HOOLOCK GIBBON (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Eco and Env)

Context: An approval by the Union environment ministry for exploratory oil and gas drilling in parts of Assam may put the endangered hoolock gibbon at further risk.

Hoolock Gibbon

• About: Gibbons are the smallest and fastest of all apes, inhabiting tropical and subtropical forests in Southeast Asia.
• Geographic Distribution: They are found in forested areas of Northeast India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Southern China.

• Gibbon Species in India:

o Western Hoolock Gibbon Range: It has a broad range, inhabiting all states of north-east India between the Brahmaputra and Dibang rivers, as well as eastern Bangladesh and north-west Myanmar.

o Eastern Hoolock Gibbon Range: It is found in specific pockets of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam in India, and extends into southern China and north-east Myanmar.

• Conservation Status: The western hoolock gibbon is classified as Endangered by the IUCN Redlist, while the eastern hoolock gibbon is listed as Vulnerable.

o Indian (Wildlife) Protection Act 1972: Schedule I

• Conservation Area:

o Hoollongapar Reserve Forest

o Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary

• Population: Western hoolock gibbons have declined by almost 90% over the last 30 years, and it is now considered to be one of the most endangered 25 primate species in the world.