“There has been a surprising neglect of species which are considered are pests, because of attention towards the conservation of ‘charismatic species’”, said Anindya Sinha, Professor at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, here on Saturday.
He was speaking on ‘Social and Cultural Evolution in Bonnet Macaques’, as part of a lecture programme in honour of the superannuation of Prof Mewa Singh, Department of Studies in Psychology, University of Mysore.
Speaking on the research on Macaques, which Anindya and his team were involved in for the last 12 years, he said Macaques were fast disappearing. It is mainly due to habitat loss. Macaques also have a tendency to move towards human habitats in search of food, which tends to be disastrous for the animals, he said.
He briefed on the findings of his research, 30 troupes of macaques are being monitored for the last 12 years. “We have a database in which we can identify 800 different macaques by face,” he said.
The team which is conducting research on the behaviour of these animals are working towards understanding social and cultural evolution, which can be observed when these macaques beg from the tourists or wash fruits before they consume them, he said.
He also explained the differences between uni-male and multi-male troups of macaques and the social evolution of the troups.
Ajith Kumar, Professor of National Centre for Biological Sciences, speaking on Singalikas or lion tailed macaques said that strategies should be framed to prevent these animals from getting extinct, owing to habitat loss.
He proposed finding and securing habitats of these animals, which are encroached by private parties and managing the population of these animals in fragmented land as measures to ensure the survival of these primates.
DH News Service