Take off of a golden langur, Bhutan

Gee’s golden langur or simply the golden langur, is an Old World monkey found in a small region of western Assam, India and in the neighboring foothills of the Black Mountains of Bhutan. It is one of the most endangered primate species of India. Long considered sacred by many Himalayan people, the golden langur was first brought to the attention of the western world by the naturalist E. P. Gee in the 1950s. The coat of the adult golden langur ranges from cream to golden; on its flanks and chest the hairs are darker and often rust coloured; the coats of the juveniles and females are lighter, silvery white to light buff. The golden langur has a black face and a very long tail measuring up to 50 cm (19.69 in) in length. Apart from their fur, Gee’s golden langurs are known for having long tails which can grow up to 39 inches long, even longer than their bodies, especially in males. They use these tails to swing from one tree to another. When they are alarmed, however, they will leap from tree to tree instead. The regions of its distribution are very small; the main region is limited to an area approximately 60 miles square bounded on the south by the Brahmaputra River, on the east by the Manas River, on the west by the Sankosh River, all in Assam, India, and on the north by the Black Mountains of Bhutan.

This species is treated as near Endangered by IUCN. A total Indian population in 2001 of 1064 individuals, in 130 groups, was recorded. Of these, approximately 60% were adults indicating a relative lack of infants and juveniles. This species is listed as one of the worlds 25 most endangered primates.