Status of Bengal Slow Loris Nycticebus bengalensis (Primates: Lorisidae) in Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary, Assam, India

Abstract

Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary (GWLS) in the Jorhat District of Assam in northeastern India is rich in primate diversity with seven species. The plains alluvial semi-evergreen forest patches with high canopy cover support a variety of fauna. In October-November 2008, we carried out a survey to estimate the population status of Bengal Slow Loris (Nycticebus bengalensis) in GWLS, a species for which little data are available in India, and whose conservation status has only recently been changed from Data Deficient to Vulnerable. We estimated population abundance of 0.18 loris individuals/km using recce-survey transects’ method in GWLS. Keywords: Bengal Slow Loris, Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary, Nycticebus bengalensis, population abundance