Dusky Leaf Monkey

The dusky leaf-monkey Trachypithecus obscurus can be found in the forest of Burma, Malaysia, Thailand and may also occur in the the forest of Yunnan, China. While this species prefers to live in closed primary forests, it is also found in secondary forests and fringe of urban forests The dusky leaf-monkey spends most of its time in the upper canopy levels of the forest

The dusky leaf-monkey is folivorous ie. feeds on leaves, it also consume fruit and flowers. Young leaves constitute a high proportion (52%) of the diet for this species while fruit consumed tends to be unripe. Dusky leaf-monkeys are able to take advantage of unripe fruit, which have chemical defenses, by the same means that they breakdown toxins in plant leaves, the bacteria found in their digestive system. The dusky leaf-monkey also has enlarged salivary glands to assist it in breaking down food.

These monkeys were taken in KL at Taman Rimba Ampang, recently.

D2X, 500mmf4, 1/320 sec @ f/5, ISO 400, Metering Mode: center weighted, Exposure Program manual, wimberely gimbal head, slight cropped.