There is officially a new species of monkey that has been named,
though the Lesula Monkey has been long familiar animal to the
locals of its central African habitat in the lowland forests of
the Congo. A team of scientists has been investigating the
species since June 2007 and have now given it the binomial
Cercopithecus lomamiensis. It was discovered when researchers
found a lesula monkey that was the pet of a school director’s
daughter. The lesula resembles an owl-faced monkey, but is
easily distinguishable by its variations in color, its
significantly larger incisors and second molars. They have since
proven that the owl-monkey and the lesula are close relatives
but genetically distinct, most likely separated geographically
by a river that led to the differences between the two species.
This is only the second discovery of a new monkey species in 28
years, but it reminds us that there are still areas of earth to
be explored and things to be found. If this has triggered your
fondness of monkeys, here are a