Gray Langur - Status and Conservation

Status and Conservation

Gray langurs have stable populations in some areas and declining ones in others. Both the black-footed gray langur and Kashmir gray langur are considered threatened. The latter is the rarest species of gray langur, with less than 250 mature individuals remaining.

In India, langurs number at around 300,000. India has laws prohibiting the capturing or killing of langurs. Enforcement of these laws have proven to be difficult and it seems most people are unaware of their protection. as well mining, forest fires and explotation of wood for other uses.

Langurs can be found near roads and can become victims of automobile accidents. This happens even in protected areas, with deaths by automobile collisions making nearly a quarter of mortality in Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan, India. Langurs are considered sacred in the Hindu religion and are sometimes kept for religious purposes by Hindu priests and for roadside performances. However, some religious groups use langurs as food and medicine, and parts of gray langurs are sometimes kept as amulets for good luck.

Because of their sacred status and their less aggressive behavior compared to other primates, langurs are generally not considered pests in many parts of India. Nevertheless, secularization seems to have somewhat changed such attitudes. Langurs will raid crops and steal food from houses, and this causes people to persecute them. While people may feed them in temples, they do not extend such care to monkey at their homes. Langurs stealing and biting people to get food in urban areas may also contribute to more persecutions.