Paper short abstract:

The first genetic assessment of the red colobus (Piliocolobus badius) in The Gambia, West Africa. We show results of genetic diversity, population structure, and demographic history, with the goal of contributing to the species conservation.

Paper long abstract:

The red colobus (Piliocolobus badius) is a colobine monkey inhabiting the forests of West Africa. It is currently classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, mainly due to habitat loss and hunting. Nevertheless, most natural populations inhabit forests near human settlements and little is known about them. In The Gambia, the smallest country where the species is known to exist, there are very few studies addressing its conservation status. Here we present what is, to our knowledge, the first genetic assessment of the red colobus species in The Gambia. We have genotyped more than 40 individuals from different locations in the country using up to 13 microsatellite loci. We will present the levels of genetic diversity, population structure, and demographic history for the species in the country, as well as a comparison with metrics found in other populations of the same species in West Africa. The results show relatively high levels of genetic diversity, within the range found for other African colobines, and no strong signals of population substructure. The red colobus high dispersal ability is thus highlighted by the results of this study. The contrasting results found for the same species in forested areas with varying degrees of fragmentation emphasise the usefulness of genetics in conservation science.