White-collared Lemur, Eulemur albocollaris - Top 25 Most Endangered Primates

Image © 2007 by Stephen Nash. White-collared Lemur
Eulemur albocollaris (Rumpler, 1975)
Madagascar
(2004, 2006)
Recently recognized as a full species, the white-collared lemur has one of the most restricted ranges of its genus, threatened by massive habitat destruction caused by logging and agroconversion.

The white-collared lemur was formerly classed as a subspecies of Eulemur fulvus (Tattersall 1982; Mittermeier et al. 1994; Pastorini et al. 2000). Recent cytogenetic and molecular genetic analyses support full species status for Eulemur albocollaris (Djletati et al. 1997; Wyner et al. 1999), despite natural hybridization between this taxon and Eulemur f. rufus (Sterling and Ramarason 1996; Johnson and Wyner 2000; Wyner et al. 2002).
The white-collared lemur has one of the most restricted ranges of any Eulemur species, occurring only in southeastern Madagascar in a thin strip of rain forest that runs from just north of the Manampatrana River south to the Mananara River (Petter and Petter-Rousseaux 1979; Tattersall 1982; Irwin et al. 2005). The hybrid zone with E. f. rufus is centered on the headwaters region of the Manampatrana River in Andringitra National Park, extending south to the vicinity of Karianga and north to near Ankarimbelo (Irwin et al. 2005; S. Johnson unpublished data), and encompassing an area of up to 50% of the range of “pure” E. albocollaris. Two isolated populations also occur in the coastal fragments of Manombo Special Reserve and Mahabo Forest near Farafangana.
Recent analyses combining ground surveys and Landsat imagery indicate that the total habitat remaining within this species’ range is approximately 700 km², with an estimated remaining population of 7,265 ±2,268 individuals (Irwin et al. 2005). Information regarding the natural history of this lemur comes largely from recent studies conducted at Vevembe Forest, with new long-term studies underway at Manombo and Mahabo.
The white-collared lemur has a largely frugivorous diet, supplemented with flowers, leaves, and fungi; Pandanus spp. flowers are an especially important food late in the dry season (Johnson 2002). The species is cathemeral (active both day and night) throughout the year. Social groups tend to be multi-male/multi-female and regularly exhibit fission-fusion.
Selective logging, hunting and the conversion of its habitat to agricultural land are the greatest threats to the survival of the white-collared lemur. It is found in only two protected areas, the Andringitra National Park and Manombo Special Reserve, but the Andringitra population appears to be largely composed of hybrids (CBSG 2002; Wyner et al. 2002). Recent research has identified populations in unprotected forests (Vevembe, for example) that could be added to existing parks and reserves (Johnson and Overdorff 1999). The Missouri Botanical Garden is also presently active in managing and upgrading the protected status of the littoral forest of Mahabo.
It should be noted that a possible third Eulemur species, E. cinereiceps, has been suggested to occur within or near the coastal portion of the range of E. albocollaris based on variant museum specimens and captive individuals (Groves 2001; Mittermeier et al. 2006). However, the weight of current evidence suggests this taxon is either synonymous with E. albocollaris or extinct. All surveyed remaining habitats appear to contain either E. albocollaris (Manombo and Mahabo, south of Farafangana) or are too small and/or disturbed to support Eulemur (for example, Analalava and Sakanany, north of Farafangana); however, exhaustive ground surveys and genetic sampling should be conducted in the region to confirm these findings.

Steig Johnson & William R. Konstant

References
CBSG. 2002. Evaluation et Plans de Gestion pour la Conservation (CAMP) de la Faune Madagascar: Lémuriens, Autres Mammifères, Reptiles et Amphibiens, Poissons d’eau douce et Evaluation de la Viabilité des Populations et des Habitats des Hypogeomys antimena (Vositse). IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group (CBSG), Apple Valley, Minnesota.
Djletati, R., B. Brun and Y. Rumpler. 1997. Meiotic study of hybrids in the genus Eulemur and taxonomic considerations. Am. J. Primatol. 42: 235–245.
Groves, C. P. 2001. Primate Taxonomy. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, DC.
Irwin, M. T., S. E. Johnson and P. C. Wright. In press. The state of lemur conservation in southeastern Madagascar: Population and habitat assessments for diurnal lemurs using surveys, satellite imagery and GIS. Oryx 39.
Johnson, S. E. 2002. Ecology and speciation in brown lemurs: white-collared lemurs (Eulemur albocollaris) and hybrids (Eulemur albocollaris x Eulemur fulvus rufus) in southeastern Madagascar. Ph. D. thesis, University of Texas, Austin.
Johnson, S. E. 2006. Evolutionary divergence in the brown lemur species complex. In: Lemurs: Ecology and Adaptation, L. Gould and M. L. Sauther (eds.), pp.187–210. Springer, New York.
Johnson, S. E. and D. J. Overdorff. 1999. Census of brown lemurs (Eulemur fulvus spp.) in southeastern Madagascar: Methods testing and conservation implications. Am. J. Primatol. 47: 51–60.
Johnson, S. and Y. Wyner. 2000. Notes on the biogeography of Eulemur fulvus albocollaris. Lemur News 5: 25–28.
Mittermeier, R. A., W. R. Konstant, F. Hawkins, E. E. Louis Jr., O. Langrand, J. Ratsimbazafy, R. Rasoloarison, J. U. Ganzhorn, S. Rajaobelina, I. Tattersall and D. M. Meyers. 2006. Lemurs of Madagascar, 2nd Ed., Conservation International, Washington, DC.
Pastorini, J., M. R. J. Forstner and R. D. Martin. 2000. Relationships among brown lemurs (Eulemur fulvus) based on mitochondrial DNA sequences. Molec. Phylogenet. Evol. 16: 418–429.
Petter, J.-J. and A. Petter-Rousseaux. 1979. Classification of the prosimians. In: The Study of Prosimian Behavior, G. A. Doyle and R. D. Martin (eds.), pp.359–409. Academic Press, London.
Rumpler, Y. 1975. The significance of chromosomal studies in the systematics of the Malagasy lemurs. In Lemur Biology, Vol. 1, I. Tattersall and R. W. Sussman (eds.), pp.25–40. Plenum Press, New York.
Sterling, E. J. and M. G. Ramaroson. 1996. Rapid assessment of the primate fauna of the eastern slopes of the Rèserve Naturelle Intégrale d’Andringitra, Madagascar. In: A Floral and Faunal Inventory of the Eastern Slopes of the Rèserve Naturelle Intégrale d’Andringitra, Madagascar: With Reference to Elevational Variation, S. M. Goodman (ed.). Fieldiana: Zool., new series 85: 293–305.
Tattersall, I. 1982. The Primates of Madagascar. Columbia University Press, New York.
Wyner, Y., R. Absher, G. Amato, E. Sterling, R. Stumpf, Y. Rumpler and R. DeSalle. 1999. Species concepts and the determination of historic gene flow patterns in the Eulemur fulvus (brown lemur) complex. Biol.J. Linn. Soc. 65:39–56.
Wyner, Y. M., S. E. Johnson, R. M. Stumpf and R. DeSalle. 2002. Genetic assessment of a white-collared x red-fronted lemur hybrid zone at Andringitra, Madagascar. Am. J. Primatol. 57: 51–66.

Suggested citation:
Johnson, S. and Konstant, W. R. 2007. White-collared Lemur, Eulemur albocollaris. In: Primates in Peril: The World’s 25 Most Endangered Primates 2006–2008, R. A. Mittermeier et al. (compilers), pp.4,6. Unpublished report, IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group (PSG), International Primatological Society (IPS), and Conservation International (CI), Arlington, VA.