Critically Endangered
Ecuadorian capuchin
Cebus aequatorialis
Ecuadorian capuchin is a primate in the family Cebidae (order Primates) — Cebus aequatorialis, recorded as Critically Endangered.
Appearance
The Ecuadorian capuchin, or Ecuadorian white-fronted capuchin is a gracile capuchin monkey of the family Cebidae. It was formerly classified as a subspecies of the white-fronted capuchin (C. Albifrons). The primary physical distinction between C. Albifrons and C. Aequatorialis is their coloration.
Range and habitat
Suitable habitat for the Ecuadorian Capuchin is determined to be a high percentage of tree cover (most important factor and maximized when over 25%), land cover (as deciduous, evergreen broad leaved, or forested cropland mosaic), mild temperature seasonality, low annual precipitation, and low human population density. The dispersal of the Ecuadorian capuchin has been restricted due to deforestation and habitat fragmentation, as a result the distribution range used to be from western Ecuador to northwestern Peru. Through the combination of the IUCN's map and the study of Campos and Jack, the Ecuadorian capuchin has lost over 90% of its habitat.
Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.
Diet
From this study, results showed that during fall/winter when trees lost their leaves and when fruits have fallen, it forces the Ecuadorian Capuchin to come down to forage on the ground. The Ecuadorian Capuchin has a varied diet, it includes insects, fruits, and other invertebrate species.
In addition, they are known to eat the "base of epiphytic bromeliad leaves because they are tender" (p. 181). Even so, the most important foods to the Ecuadorian capuchin diet are mainly composed of fruits and invertebrates.
In crisis
Due to low density and distribution researchers have not been able to make a confident molecular genetic assessment of the C. Aequatorialis population, but assign it species status based on geographical isolation, morphological characteristics, and the phylogenetic species concept. The conservation status of the Ecuadorian Capuchin was originally near threatened but was revised in 2008 by the IUCN to critically endangered due to the population's rapid decline. Anthropogenic factors such as habitat fragmentation from rapid deforestation, creation of agricultural lands, and persecution from farmers are to blame for the species' critically endangered status.
The forests of Ecuador and Peru are already facing rapid deforestation with only 4% of the forest left.
Ecuadorian capuchin is Critically Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.
Sources
Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Ecuadorian capuchin, Wikidata item Q124088882. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.
