Macaca munzala, never seen before

Scientists from India working in the Himalayas have discovered a new species of monkey, a stocky, short-tailed, brown-haired creature they h...

Scientists from India working in the Himalayas have discovered a new species of monkey, a stocky, short-tailed, brown-haired creature they have named the Macaca munzala or Arunachal macaque.

Though new species of insects and other tiny creatures turn up from time to time, discoveries of primate species unknown to science are unusual. The last macaque monkey species to be identified, the Indonesia Pagai macaque, was discovered in 1903, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society, the parent organisation of the Bronx Zoo. The society was a supporter of the expeditions, this year and last, in which the monkeys were observed.

Scientists for the society, the Nature Conservation Foundation and other organisations travelled to Arunachal Pradesh to inventory the region8217;s wildlife. They found 14 troops, or bands, of monkeys, most with 10 or fewer animals. The monkeys differ from other macaques in the dark hair on their heads, their distinctive facial markings and, in particular, the relatively short length of their tails.

The Wildlife Conservation Society says it is not known how many of the monkeys there are, or whether they are threatened.

The researchers, who describe their discovery in a paper to be published in The International Journal of Primatology, said the monkeys sometimes lived close to villages but were wary of people. In undisturbed forest areas, the researchers wrote, 8216;8216;they seemed extremely shy, rapidly disappearing through the undergrowth as soon as they sensed human presence.8217;8217;

Though the monkeys are new to science, people in the area are quite familiar with them. They call them 8216;8216;mun zala8217;8217; or deep forest monkeys, the wildlife society said.

In recent years, other expeditions to Arunachal Pradesh have turned up several species not known to exist in India. Dr Colleen McCann, curator of primates at the Bronx Zoo, said these discoveries suggested that despite the destructive activities of people, there were still 8216;8216;tiny pockets of habitat that have yet to be discovered.8217;8217;

NEW YORK TIMES