{"id":62705,"date":"2026-07-15T18:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/?p=2579257"},"modified":"2026-07-15T18:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T18:00:00","slug":"congolese-monkey-with-mask-like-face-and-strong-bo-is-new-to-science","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/2026\/07\/15\/congolese-monkey-with-mask-like-face-and-strong-bo-is-new-to-science\/","title":{"rendered":"Congolese monkey with mask-like face and strong BO is new to science"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1224\" height=\"816\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2579256\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg 1224w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=400,267 400w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=900,600 900w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=1200,800 1200w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=196,131 196w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=301,201 301w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=415,277 415w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=602,401 602w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=830,553 830w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=105,70 105w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_305157117.jpg?resize=210,140 210w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1224px) 100vw, 1224px\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><div class=\"wp-image__caption--icon\"><svg width=\"15\" height=\"15\" viewbox=\"0 0 15 15\"><use href=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/themes\/newscientist\/images\/icon-circle-chevron.svg#icon-circle-chevron\"><\/use><\/svg><\/div><div class=\"wp-image__caption--text\">The newly recognised monkey species<em> Colobus congoensis<\/em><\/div><div class=\"wp-image__caption--credit\">Daniel Rosengren<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A monkey with a distinctive mask-like face, found in a remote part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, has been declared a new species \u2013 only the fifth new species of monkey documented from Africa in the past 75 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The monkey is known as likweli to local people who hunt it for bushmeat, and it has been given the scientific name <em>Colobus congoensis<\/em>. It lives in one of the most inaccessible parts of Africa, without paved roads or infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t<div class=\"read-more__standard wp-block-newscientist-read-more\">\n\t\t<a class=\"read-more__standard--wrapper no-animation\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/article\/2458485-the-extraordinary-ways-species-control-their-own-evolutionary-fate\/\">\n\t\t\t<strong>Read more<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<p>The extraordinary ways species control their own evolutionary fate<\/p>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cA typical expedition involves multiple modes of transportation: a flight, followed by a motorcycle ride, two days of hiking on foot and finally travel by dugout canoe to reach the monkey\u2019s range,\u201d says <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fau.edu\/experts\/profile\/?expert=kate.detwiler\">Kate Detwiler<\/a> at Florida Atlantic University.<\/p>\n<div class=\"advert-wrapper advert__mid-article\">\n\t<div class=\"advert\">\n\t\t<div class=\"advert__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"advert__copy\">\n\t\t\t\t\tAdvertisement\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"advert__slot\" id=\"mid-article-slot\">\n\t\t\t\t<script>\n\t\t\t\t\tif( window?.adverts?.addToArray ) {\n\t\t\t\t\t\twindow.adverts.addToArray( {\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"pos\": \"mid-article-slot\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t} );\n\t\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the most intriguing features of likweli is its facial appearance, says Detwiler. The light-coloured skin around the mouth and beneath the nose is unlike that of any other African colobus species, but resembles the facial pattern seen in some Asian colobine monkeys.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Detwiler and her colleagues believe the species\u2019 mask-like face may represent ancestral traits that were present before the African and Asian colobine lineages diverged over 8 million years ago. \u201cIf so, likweli may have retained characteristics that were subsequently modified or lost in the other African colobus species,\u201d says Detwiler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-newscientist-newsletter-promotion\">\n\t<div class=\"newsletter-promotion__content\">\n\t\t<p class=\"newsletter-promotion__tagline\">Free newsletter<\/p>\n\t\t<h4 class=\"newsletter-promotion__title\">\n\t\t\tSign up to The Earth Edition\t\t<\/h4>\n\t\t<p class=\"newsletter-promotion__excerpt\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t<div class=\"newsletter-promotion__actions\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"button button--secondary button--has-icon\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/sign-up\/the-earth-edition\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<span>Sign up to newsletter<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<svg width=\"18\" height=\"18\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" style=\"--fill-color: #000\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<use href=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/themes\/newscientist\/images\/icon-arrow-right.svg#icon-arrow-right\"><\/use>\n\t\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"newsletter-promotion__background\">\n\t\t<span class=\"newsletter-promotion__gradient\"><\/span>\n\t\t<div class=\"newsletter-promotion__image__wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"image__wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/16102103\/the_earth_edition_2025_ed_newsletter_landingtiles_2400px.jpg?w=600&amp;h=450&amp;crop=1\" class=\"attachment-4x3-sm size-4x3-sm wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" sizes=\"(min-width: 432px) 412px, (min-width: 300px) 373px, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/16102103\/the_earth_edition_2025_ed_newsletter_landingtiles_2400px.jpg?resize=300,225 300w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/16102103\/the_earth_edition_2025_ed_newsletter_landingtiles_2400px.jpg?resize=400,300 400w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/16102103\/the_earth_edition_2025_ed_newsletter_landingtiles_2400px.jpg?resize=600,450 600w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/16102103\/the_earth_edition_2025_ed_newsletter_landingtiles_2400px.jpg?resize=800,600 800w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/16102103\/the_earth_edition_2025_ed_newsletter_landingtiles_2400px.jpg?resize=1024,768 1024w, https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/16102103\/the_earth_edition_2025_ed_newsletter_landingtiles_2400px.jpg?resize=1920,1440 1920w\">\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like other colobus monkeys, likweli also has a distinctive body odour that defies description, she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Scientists first became aware of the species in 2008 when a team surveying on the banks of the Lomami river, in what is now Lomami National Park, took a photo that showed only a part of a monkey that had not been seen before, high in the canopy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then, in November 2018, another group again spotted the monkey, which is about 1.3 metres long and weighs around 7 kilograms. Between 2018 and 2022, there were 114 recorded observations of the new species, 25 of which were from vocalisations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2021, several monkeys that had been killed by hunters for bushmeat were confiscated and handed over to researchers. Detailed morphological and genetic analysis confirmed they were indeed a wholly separate species. Genetic tests and recordings of their vocalisations also added to the evidence of their uniqueness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\t<div class=\"read-more__standard wp-block-newscientist-read-more\">\n\t\t<a class=\"read-more__standard--wrapper no-animation\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newscientist.com\/article\/2474981-what-the-surprising-lives-of-solitary-animals-reveal-about-us\/\">\n\t\t\t<strong>Read more<\/strong>\n\t\t\t<p>What the surprising lives of solitary animals reveal about us<\/p>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe genetic analyses revealed that likweli is a deeply divergent lineage that split from its closest known relative, <em>Colobus satanas<\/em>, approximately 4 to 5 million years ago,\u201d says Detwiler. \u201cThat was much older than we expected and provided strong evidence that likweli represents a distinct species.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Likweli is isolated from <em>C. satanas<\/em> by more than 1200 kilometres and several major river barriers. Unlike most other members of the genus, which have habitats exceeding 60,000 square kilometres, likweli is only known to exist in 1700 square kilometres of rainforest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHunting is one of the primary threats facing likweli, particularly because the species has such a small known range and appears to occur at low densities,\u201d says Detwiler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because of the risk of poaching and the monkey\u2019s small population and home range, the team is proposing that the species should be listed as endangered. \u201cNow that likweli has been recognised as a distinct species, another important step would be to grant it protected status under national law,\u201d says Detwiler. \u201cThis would make it illegal to hunt the species, including in the buffer zone surrounding the park.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"journal-reference__wrapper wp-block-newscientist-read-more\">\n\t<strong>Journal Reference:<\/strong>\n\t<p>\n\t\t<em>PLOS One:<\/em>\n\t\t<a class=\"journal-reference__link no-animation\" href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.0349857\">\n\t\t\tDOI: 10.1371\/journal.pone.0349857\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A black colobus monkey from a remote part of the Congo Basin rainforest, known locally as likweli, is thought to be severely threatened by poaching<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":890,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[781,2523],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-62705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-animals","category-life"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62705"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/890"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62705"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62705\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":62706,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62705\/revisions\/62706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hoo.central12.com\/fugic\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}