Abundance, diversity, and patterns of distribution of primates on the Tapiche River in Amazonian Peru

This work presents data on the relative diversity, abundance, and distribution patterns of primates in a 20 km2 area of the Tapiche River in the Peruvian Amazon. Population data were collected while the study area was both inundated and dry (March to September 1997) using conventional line-transect census techniques. Survey results reflected the presence of 11 primate species, but population parameters on only eight of the species will be presented, including saddleback tamarins (Saguinus fuscicollis), Bolivian squirrel monkeys (Saimiri boliviensis), brown capuchins (Cebus apella), white-fronted capuchins (Cebus albifrons), monk sakis (Pithecia monachus), red titi monkeys (Callicebus cupreus), red uakaris (Cacajao calvus), and red howler monkeys (Alouatta seniculus). Woolly monkeys (Lagothrix lagotricha), night monkeys (Aotus nancymaae), and pygmy marmosets (Callithrix pygmaea) were also seen in the area. The data for the smaller-bodied primates is similar to that reported almost 18 years earlier, but the data for the larger-bodied primates reflect a loss in the number of animals present in the area. Pressure from hunters and the timber industry may account for declining numbers of large-bodied primates, while it appears that natural features peculiar to the conservation area contribute to the patchy pattern of distribution.