RAS question
The IUCN conservation status of Lion-tailed Macaque is:
Correct answer: (C) Endangered.
The lion-tailed macaque is classified as Endangered by the IUCN.
Explanation
The lion-tailed macaque, Macaca silenus, is an Endangered primate. The Central Zoo Authority studbook states that it is categorised as endangered in the IUCN Mammal Red Data Book and listed as endangered in the IUCN Red List. The species is endemic to the evergreen rainforests of the Western Ghats and occurs in the Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu part of that landscape. Its conservation status is important because the species is a habitat specialist, highly arboreal, primarily frugivorous and among the most threatened primates endemic to the Western Ghats.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Near Threatened understates the risk because the Central Zoo Authority studbook identifies the lion-tailed macaque as Endangered, not as a lower-risk category.
- (B) Least Concern is wrong because the species is a threatened Western Ghats endemic of clear conservation concern.
- (D) Data Deficient is wrong because the Central Zoo Authority studbook gives a definite IUCN threat category instead of saying that evidence is insufficient for assessment.
Concept
The item tests IUCN threat categories and species-specific conservation facts under Environment and Ecology. RAS often repeats such questions because endemic Western Ghats fauna connect biodiversity status, habitat specialisation and conservation priorities in one fact pattern.