SINGAPORE, Oct 11 — Once thought to be on the verge of extinction in Singapore, the number of the critically endangered Raffles’ banded langur, a type of monkey, is now set to double to 150 in the next 15 years, new research has found.

By about 2070, that population could grow to about 244.

The recent study was done by researchers from Singapore and United Kingdom’s Oxford Brookes University. The research paper was published in the Raffles Bulletin of Zoology in September.

The primate, named after Sir Stamford Raffles — credited as the man who first set foot on the island in 1819 and established it as a trading post — has distinctive black fur and white bands on its chest and inner legs.

Apart from Singapore, a number of isolated populations of the Raffles’ banded langur can also be found in southern Peninsular Malaysia.

The Oxford Brookes University and Mandai Nature said in a joint media release on Tuesday (Oct 10) that efforts to protect these rare primates and conserve the remaining population has steadily improved outcomes over the years.

Mandai Nature, formed in December 2020, is the conservation arm of Mandai Wildlife Group, which oversees the operations of wildlife parks here such as the zoo.

"The results presented in our paper show that with the right protection and management measures in place, we can bring a species back from the brink of extinction,” the statement read.

Past research done in the 1990s had suggested that the Raffles’ banded langur was likely be extinct in Singapore within 40 years due to habitat loss and fragmentation.

Protecting Singapore’s rarest primate

In 2016, the Raffles’ Banded Langur Working Group was formed through a partnership of various organisations in Singapore and Malaysia, to drive and deliver on conservation goals for the species.

It includes the National Parks Board of Singapore (NParks), the national scientific authority for biodiversity conservation in Singapore, as well as academics from universities and nature groups here.

The Mandai Nature-funded working group has been spearheading an effort that has led to improved habitat protection, population research and public awareness for the langurs.

The programme, in its seventh year and boasting more than 520 volunteers, also engages in public outreach and advocacy initiatives, aimed at raising the profile of the species here.

Strengthen conservation efforts

Despite the positive results arising from the study, the researchers emphasised that even a slight increase in deaths within the population could lead to a reduction in the langurs’ population size within the next 50 years.

They found that the loss of unprotected habitat is the greatest current threat to the population, and the most effective short-term management strategy was the enhancement of connectivity between forest fragments in their existing habitat.

The paper’s lead author Amy Woolloff said that to ensure the long-term survival of this species here, there was "an urgent need” to identify more suitable habitats for the primate.

It was also important "to enhance habitat connectivity to prevent deaths occurring from road crossings, and to increase population genetic diversity with conservation translocation”.

NParks and researchers believe that more work needs to be done to conserve the langur population here, but they acknowledged the progress made so far.

They hoped that the strategies used in Singapore can be replicated for similar wildlife populations that are critically endangered globally.

NParks’ group director of conservation Lim Liang Jim said: "NParks will continue to work with the community to come up with strategies to strengthen the survival of our native langurs and other wildlife.”

The langurs are just one of the many endangered species that have led to conservations efforts worldwide.

The giant panda, which is native to China and one of the world’s most iconic and endangered species, saw a declining population due to habitat loss and low reproductive rates.

Conservation efforts, such as habitat restoration, captive breeding programmes and anti-poaching measures, were later implemented to save the giant panda, which increased its population from around 1,000 individuals in the 1970s to more than 2,000 today. — TODAY