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Ranging behaviour and its relation to diet selection in Tana River Red colobus (Colobus badius rufomitratus)
Author(s) -
Marsh C. W.
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
journal of zoology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.915
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1469-7998
pISSN - 0952-8369
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-7998.1981.tb03479.x
Subject(s) - biology , home range , range (aeronautics) , quadrat , ecology , habitat , materials science , shrub , composite material
Ranging behaviour of a group of Red colobus monkeys, Colobus badius rufomitratus, on the Tana River, Kenya, is described. The main study group had a mean day journey of 603 in and an annual range area of 9 ha (measured in 0.25 ha quadrats). Relationships between ranging patterns and diet selection are sought on both spatial and temporal dimensions. Differential use of the annual range is related to the distribution of major food species, while the diversity of monthly ranging patterns is inversely related to the availability of young growth in the canopy. These findings lead to a discussion of why range areas at the Tana are much smaller than those reported from rain‐forest sites.