Endangered Hoolock gibbons moved to safety in India

Some of the last apes found in India

December 2011: An isolated group of endangered gibbons is being rescued from a remote Indian village.

Stranded in small clusters of trees, the Hoolock gibbons are some of the last apes found in India. The first two individuals have now been successfully translocated and released into a safe habitat in Mehao Wildlife Sanctuary.


A team of experts from the International Fund for Animal Welfare - Wildlife Trust of India (IFAW-WTI) have been assisting the state Forest Department in the operation that aims to ensure better survival prospects for 18 stranded gibbon families.

Habitat fragmentation is leaving them vulnerable

Hoolock gibbons are the only apes found in India, with their distribution restricted to the country's northeast region.

Habitat fragmentation is one of the serious concerns to the conservation of the Hoolock gibbons, which are also threatened by poaching and illegal trade.

There are populations of both these species of lesser apes struggling to survive in discontinuous patches leaving them highly vulnerable to local extinction.

‘Gibbons are highly specialised canopy-dwellers using their long arms for movement along tree branches. Their physical attributes are not suited to walk and they become easy prey on the ground, so it is very rare to see them descend from the canopy under natural circumstances,' said Dr Ian Robinson, IFAW Emergency Relief Director.

Desperate bid to find food
In Dello, however, the stranded gibbons have been seen to descend on the ground in a desperate bid to find food.

‘Dello is a small village once hosting a good tree cover and undoubtedly supporting a healthy population of the eastern Hoolock gibbons. But extensive felling of private forests has restricted the remnant population comprising 18 families in small clusters of trees surrounded by swathes of farmlands,' said Ipra Mekola, Arunachal Pradesh State Wildlife Advisory Member.

After deliberating on ways to save the gibbons, the team of experts decided that moving them to a better habitat was the only realistic option.

Close-knit family bonds
‘The family of gibbons we selected was the most vulnerable of the 18 families. This comprised an adult male, a female and a youngster. The female has been missing - and we have not been able to fnd her,' said WTI Coordinator Sunil Kyarong, who along with Dr Roy, veterinarians Dr NVK Ashraf, Dr Abhijit Bhawal and biologist Soumya Das Gupta formed the IFAW-WTI team.

Despite the missing female, the move of the remaining two members was successfully carried out as scheduled and their progress will now be carefully monitored.

‘A month or so ago, a female and her young were killed in attack by dogs. We fear that the missing female may be dead too, as gibbons have very close-knit family bonds lasting their lifetime, and wouldn't leave the family to wander off alone,' IFAW-WTI primatologist Dr Kuladeep Roy said.
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