Lowe’s Monkey, Cercopithecus lowei

LOWE'S MONKEY

Cercopithecus lowei

Geographic Distribution and Habitat

Lowe’s monkeys (Cercopithecus lowei), also called Lowe’s mona monkeys or Lowe’s guenons, inhabit the eastern portion of West Africa’s Upper Guinean Forest, particularly southern Ghana and southeastern Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast). Historical accounts suggest their range once extended into Togo and Benin, though modern surveys indicate they have likely been extirpated from these areas. Conservation International recognizes the Upper Guinean Forest as one of the world’s top 36 biodiversity hotspots, hosting more than 2,000 vertebrate species, many of them endemic or threatened.

To the west, the Cavally River separates the Lowe’s monkeys’ range from their doppelganger (and close relative), the Campbell’s mona monkey (Cercopithecus campbelli), found from Senegal east to the Cavally. In the east, the arid Dahomey Gap, a dry savanna corridor, forms a natural biogeographic barrier that prevents West African forest species from spreading into Central Africa.

Across their range, the climate is humid and strongly seasonal, with two rainy periods (major rains from mid-March to mid-July; minor rains in September to November) and two dry periods (major dry season from December to mid-March; minor dry season in August). Cooler, dust-laden Harmattan winds sweep in from the Sahara during the main dry season.

Their habitat is lowland tropical rainforest, from coastal plains at sea level to inland plateaus under 984 ft (300 m) in elevation. Most populations occur below 492 ft (150 m) and prefer primary lowland rainforest with a voluminous closed canopy (average tree height 60 ft (18m), a diverse woody understory, and a mix of evergreen and moist semi-deciduous trees. Home ranges span from 3 to 98 acres (1.5 to 40 hectares), depending heavily on habitat quality and food availability.

Lowe’s monkeys are highly adaptable and can be found in most other West African forest types. In addition to undisturbed forests, they live in gallery forests along waterways, swamp forests, and coastal mangroves. They even tolerate human-modified environments such as secondary forests and derived savannas—patchworks of cropland and bush fallow shaped by centuries of human activity. As their habitats become increasingly fragmented, foraging often occurs in cocoa farms and fruit plantations, and some areas near human settlements and refuse sites, though they generally avoid urban environments.

TAXONOMIC NOTES

Scientists sometimes group related species that look similar or share a recent common ancestor into ‘species complexes’ or ‘superspecies groups.’ The guenon genus divides into five such groups: Blue, Mona, Diana, Crowned, and Greater spot-nosed.

The Lowe’s monkey belongs to the mona group, which contains six species of small, short-faced guenons with colorful facial markings: Lowe’s monkey (C. lowei), Campbell’s monkey (C. campbelli), Mona monkey (C. mona), Dent’s monkey (C. denti), Wolf’s monkey (C. wolfi), and the Crowned monkey (C. pogonias).

British zoologist Oldfield Thomas first described the monkey in 1923, naming it Cercopithecus campbelli lowei. He believed his colleague, Willoughby P. Lowe, a naturalist and ornithologist, had collected a subspecies of Campbell’s mona monkey (Cercopithecus campbelli), rather than a distinct species.

In Thomas’s time, taxonomy was guided by the biological species concept, which defines species as groups of organisms that actually or potentially interbreed in nature. Because both monkeys looked nearly identical and their ranges overlapped such that they could possibly breed, Thomas’s subspecies classification held for nearly a century.

Modern taxonomy employs multiple lines of evidence to determine species status, using DNA analysis and phylogenetic reasoning to supplement what’s known about an animal’s morphology, geography, ecology, reproductive compatibility, and behavior.

In the late 1990s and 2000s, British zoologist Jonathan Kingdon reinterpreted the Lowe’s monkey’s morphological, ecological, and geographic features, giving particular emphasis to variation in facial patterns across guenon species. He argued that Lowe’s monkeys evolved in isolation, primarily inhabiting eastern Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, while Campbell’s monkeys are found farther west. The two rarely share territory, occupy different ecological niches, and display clearly different markings: all pointing to prolonged evolutionary separation. Based on this evidence, Kingdon proposed elevating the Lowe’s monkey to full species status, a position that has since been accepted by most authorities.

No large-scale genetic study has been done specifically to confirm whether the Lowe’s monkey is truly a separate species from Campbell’s mona monkey. However, smaller mitochondrial DNA surveys in Côte d’Ivoire have found that the two have clear genetic differences that suggest they have been evolving apart for a long time, even if they sometimes look alike.

Lowe's monkey range, IUCN 2025

Size, Weight, and Lifespan

Among the Afro-Eurasian monkeys of Africa, Lowe’s monkeys are considered small to medium-sized. Adult body length ranges from 16–21 inches (40–53 cm), with tapering tails generously adding another 26–35 inches (67–90 cm). This long tail-to-body ratio is typical of arboreal (tree-living) guenons, aiding balance and agility.

Lowe’s mona monkeys exhibit moderate sexual dimorphism, meaning males and females look fairly similar. Males are 30-40% larger than most adult females, weighing around 11–13 pounds (5–6 kilograms), whereas females are about 9–11 pounds (4–5 kilograms). 

Since they were considered a subspecies of the Campbell mona monkey for so many years, the Lowe’s monkey didn’t garner the same academic interest as other West African primates. Most research has focused on distribution and abundance, leaving aspects of their basic biology and behavior unknown. Estimates based on related guenons suggest they live 12-18 years in the wild, and 25-28 years in captivity. A single wild-caught Lowe’s monkey is recorded as dying in captivity at the age of 30.

Appearance

To the untrained eye, the monkeys of the mona species complex might seem interchangeable, yet each wears its own signature coat and facial pattern shaped by character displacement — an evolutionary divergence in appearance that enables individuals to recognize members of their own species and avoid hybridization, especially in regions where territories intersect. Although there are subtle differences in overall appearance, many traits of Lowe’s monkeys are adaptations to West Africa’s hot, stratified forest canopies.

Here, intense humidity lingers under evergreen thickets, pushing ambient temperatures well above 86°F (30°C). The smooth, flat pelage that tightly clings to the contours of their lithe bodies helps Lowe’s monkeys shed water, regulate temperature, and avoid fungal growth and parasitic infestations that flourish in these conditions. Longer fur flows down slender forelimbs and hindlimbs, while a black, elongated, non-prehensile tail trails behind them, counterbalancing each bound through the canopy.

Dense foliage fractures sunlight into shafts of light that illuminate otherwise dim surroundings. The subtle gloss of their coat, coupled with beautiful countershading, conceals Lowe’s monkeys in the dark mid-story from predators and prey. Charcoal-colored arms, legs, thighs, and flanks transition into flecked brown-yellow along the back and head, gradually fading into white or cream-colored fur on the front part of the body. Unlike Campbell’s monkeys, whose crown markings are sharply demarcated, the Lowe’s monkey’s head tones merge softly into one another, producing a continuous, blended look.

Large, forward-facing eyes ringed in bare blue-gray skin rest beneath a gold-dusted brow. The sclera (white of the eye) is hidden by dark bronze irises that reduce glare. Although they lack true night vision, their eyes are packed with rods to absorb available light and detect movement in the shadows. They are also trichromatic, meaning they possess three types of cone cells for detecting red, green, and blue wavelengths—useful for identifying ripe fruits during daylight foraging.

Between their eyes, a bluish-gray blaze slices down the bridge of their stout nose toward a pink mouth that projects forward. Close-set, downward-facing nostrils identify them as catarrhines (literally “downward-nosed”), contrasting with American platyrrhines that have wide-set, outward-facing nostrils. The shortened snout is associated with their greater reliance on vision over smell. They also possess more complex facial musculature, which enables a wider range of expressions than is typical of more primitive strepsirrhines (“wet-nose” primates) such as lemurs.

Barely visible beneath the fur, puffy, rounded ears sit high atop the head, positioned to triangulate sound. Splashes of gold accent mutton-chop whiskers that overlay their expandable cheek pouches (buccal sacs used to store food), serving both to protect stored items and buffer the face from abrasive vegetation.

Like all West African guenons and mangabeys, their opposable thumbs (pollex) rotate to meet their nimble fingers in an exacting pulp-to-pulp grip for manipulating small objects. Their digits end in flat nails, and their fingers are lined with dermal ridges that can carefully handle delicate fruit and firmly grasp slippery branches.

Few studies extensively detail the visual differences among males, females, and juveniles, but females are thought to share the same facial features and coloration while remaining smaller overall. Males may have broader muzzles, more prominent sternal (chest) scent glands, and blue-colored testes. Lactating females can be recognized by their swollen breasts and pendulous, cylindrical nipples. Baby-faced juveniles have paler, rounder faces with proportionally larger eyes and more muted gray coats. Their facial markings, such as cheek whiskers and brow bands, are less sharply defined and tend to be patchy until they are sexually mature.=

Diet

Lowe’s monkeys are omnivorous but with a strong frugivorous (fruit-eating) bias. In undisturbed forests, fruit makes up 60–80% of their daily intake, while buds, seeds, sap, and insects are regular additions. Young leaves and flowers are eaten occasionally. Dietary plasticity (being flexible about what they eat) is a hallmark of primates. Most species expand their diets during seasonal shortages of preferred foods, but Lowe’s monkeys maintain variety year-round.

Even without human activity altering their habitat, relying on fruit alone in West Africa’s naturally seasonal forests would risk starvation. Evergreen canopies mask the rainfall’s irregularity. Although up to 86 inches (2200 mm) of rain drenches the forest every year, plant cycles follow rainfall timing, not just the total amount of water. The region’s tropical climate churns through rainy periods and dry spells, causing “fruit gaps,” when this food is scarce between fleeting bursts of abundance. 

Smaller-bodied primates have high metabolic rates, and Lowe’s monkeys are no exception. They burn a lot of energy and require a steady stream of high-calorie food to keep going. Ripe fruits are rich in sugars, easy to digest, and, in certain seasons, plentiful. Their simple stomachs and short intestinal tract work on a “fast-in, fast-through” system. Glands in the stomach secrete pepsin and gastric acid, efficiently breaking down sugars, proteins, and soft plant tissue, but poorly handling the canopy’s cellulose leaves.

Their teeth are adapted for a mixed diet. Their flat molars with four cusps arranged in two parallel ridges grind everything from tender fruit pulp to pods. Sharp premolars slice fruit skin and crack insect shells, while elongated canines can pry stubborn invertebrates from bark crevices.

They have been recorded eating parts of over 115 plant species, though about 30 of those make up the core of their diet. Favorite fruits include figs (Ficus), hackberries (Celtis), bush mango (Irvingia gabonensis), and hog plum (Spondias mombin). 

When they find a high-value tree such as a fruiting fig, many monkeys may rush to it at once. Competition is fierce, but their expandable cheek pouches give them an advantage. These stretchy pockets, which extend from the lower jaw into the neck, allow monkeys to stuff food quickly and then move to a safer spot to eat. 

In fragmented forests or protected areas near villages, such as the Duasidan and Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuaries in Ghana, Lowe’s monkeys often rely less on wild fruit and more on food provided or left behind by people.

Trash heaps, landfills, and tourist handouts of bananas, apples, coconuts, bread, biscuits, and peanuts can make up 30–50% of their diet, depending on the season. Groups living near farms also steal yams, cassava, corn, palm nuts, and pineapples, and sometimes even break into homes or corn mills when natural foods are scarce.

Behavior and Lifestyle

These diurnal (day-active) primates divide their waking hours much like other guenons: foraging (30–40%), social interactions (5–15%), travel (20–30%), and rest (25–35%). Activity begins shortly after dawn and ends around dusk in clear day–night patterns.

Many forest monkeys, including Lowe’s monkeys, follow a bimodal foraging rhythm—feeding in the morning and again in the afternoon. The hottest hours are spent resting to conserve energy, avoid heat stress, and digest what they’ve already eaten.

Most activity takes place in the middle and lower canopies, but they move freely between all layers and descend to the ground when needed. Their locomotion is quadrupedal—four-legged walking, climbing, and leaping between branches—while ground movement uses a plantigrade stance with the entire foot touching the surface. This three-dimensional agility lets them exploit diverse food sources and maintain connections in fragmented forests that defeat less adaptable species.

Observers liken them to circus performers: racing up lianas, sliding head-first down slender trees with tails coiled as brakes, gliding feet-first along smooth supports. They leap with precision, drop into free-falls, and ricochet sideways to change direction. Broad trunks are climbed bear-like; steep ones are run down head-first. On the ground, they walk, gallop, or spring bipedally, sometimes vaulting 5 feet (1.6 m) to a branch with hands full of food.

When foraging, troops split into loose subgroups to reduce competition among themselves. They feed semi-independently in defined clusters while the dominant male stands sentinel for predators and rivals. He rarely participates in food discovery but may join feeding later, booting a subordinate from a prime spot.

Their food search involves visually scanning and feeling along branches, sampling items for ripeness as they go. Spatial memory, well-documented in related Cercopithecus species, probably helps Lowe’s monkeys keep track of resources across their territory. Rather than forage aimlessly, they remember where fruiting trees and other valuable foods, including crops, are located. Groups likely travel familiar paths between feeding sites, circling back to the same trees again and again.

In the dry months, when resources are harder to find, they spend more time traveling. Near human settlements, where they raid crops or accept hand-outs, they spend far less time foraging (about 13%) and more time moving (about 40%).

As night approaches, the troop climbs into chosen sleeping trees high in the canopy, often over steep slopes, rivers, or dense understory to limit predator access. Tall, broad-leaved species, such as Bokok trees, offer cover. Individuals spread among branches but keep in sight and sound of one another. 

Male Lowe’s monkeys sometimes mob predators they assess as threatening but not immediately lethal—particularly medium-sized or slow-moving animals that endanger juveniles but can be confronted without mortal risk. For example, if he notices a perched crowned eagle (Stephanoaetus coronatus), he may vocally harass it to encourage departure. Mongooses (genus Herpestidae) and civets (genus Viverridae) that suddenly appear near infants may also receive preemptive mobbing.

Western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) occasionally hunt monkeys and could be a threat where their ranges meet. Domestic dogs (Canis familiaris), trained to flush monkeys from cover, can bypass usual avoidance tactics, driving the monkeys into more exposed and dangerous areas to be hunted by humans.

Fun Facts

Lowe’s monkeys can thrive in logged and secondary forests where many guenons cannot.

They were once considered a subspecies of the Campbell’s mona monkey (Cercopithecus campbelli). 

They are named after Willoughby P. Lowe, English naturalist and ornithologist.

In the Ghanaian villages of Boabeng and Fiema, it is taboo to harm monkeys; locals even leave food out for them.

Dead monkeys found in the Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary are given funerals in tiny coffins and buried by a priest in the monkey cemetery.

Daily Life and Group Dynamics

The forest’s uneven resources influence how Lowe’s monkeys live together. When food grows in tight, defendable clusters, like fruiting trees, one male can control several females without wearing himself out defending a vast territory.

Most troops are unimale–multifemale: one dominant male, four or five adult females, and their young. A typical group holds 6–16 monkeys, but with juveniles included, numbers can swell to 35. The resident male holds exclusive breeding rights with his female companions and is the only male permitted in the troop.

Contrary to what the title suggests, the alpha male’s role centers on breeding and defense. He earns his position by ousting another male, either through force or when an individual dies, and maintains it by guarding receptive females and patrolling the troop’s boundaries. Instead of directing the troop, he follows them closely, sometimes intervening in group conflicts. Occasionally, he displaces subordinates from food patches or resting spots, but he typically leaves foraging and social leadership to experienced females.

As young males approach sexual maturity, their presence threatens the resident male’s monopoly. Most emigrate before a confrontation, either traveling alone or joining small bachelor groups. These wandering males loiter at the edges of established troops, watching for a moment to challenge the resident male.

Leaving is risky. Without the protection of a group, a lone male is more vulnerable to predators and may wander for years before seizing a harem of his own.

The troop’s daily rhythm follows the older females. When a trusted matriarch moves with purpose, others observe and follow, trusting her experience. This creates a decentralized, collective style of decision-making where no single individual commands the group.

Daughters remain in their birth groups for life and inherit rank from their mothers. High-ranking females access preferred resources, such as feeding spots, first. Status is reinforced with grooming and deference more than open fights. Lower-ranking females may form alliances or groom their way into favor to protect themselves and their young. These matrilines outlast every male replacement, giving the group stability in the constant flux. 

As habitats shrink from logging and development, ranges sometimes overlap. Troops defend prized fruit trees or sleeping sites but usually tolerate short visits from neighbors. Most disputes are noisy but brief—raised fur and chasing—though food shortages can turn encounters is serious fights. 

Lowe’s monkeys mingle with other primates, often forming polyspecific associations with Campbell’s monkeys, Diana monkeys (Cercopithecus diana), olive colobus (Procolobus verus), and Geoffroy’s colobus (Colobus vellerosus).

They also associate with non-primate mammals. Maxwell’s duiker (Philantomba maxwellii), a small forest antelope, trails them to eat fallen fruit. Overhead, fruit-eating birds, including yellow-billed turacos (Tauraco macrorhynchus), Klaas’s cuckoos (Chrysococcyx klaas), and black-casqued hornbills (Ceratogymna atrata) forage alongside the monkeys and even react to one another’s alarm calls. Younger monkeys will even play with hornbills. 

Communication

Scientists haven’t studied this species as deeply as some other guenons, so much of what is known about their communication comes from close relatives, especially Campbell’s mona monkeys.

In their rainforest home, sight is often unreliable. Thick leaves, vines, and twisting branches make it difficult to read expressions beyond a few feet or meters. Guenons evolved their striking facial markings in part to solve this problem: bold patches of color around the eyes highlight the direction of their gaze, helping signal dominance, submission, or the decision to move.

Sound carries farther than sight in the forest, so vocalizations are central to their communication. Though not the loudest monkeys, Lowe’s monkeys are notably chatty. When foraging parties spread out, they stay in contact with short whistles, quick chirps, or soft “boop” notes that ripple branch to branch. These sounds mark feeding trees, signal a change in direction, or simply keep everyone connected. The tones are light enough to travel through dense vegetation but difficult for predators to trace. Even when nothing big is happening, Lowe’s monkeys may make soft, friendly calls to keep the peace and remind other troops they’re nearby and mean no harm.

Adult males have the most commanding voices. A deep boom carries far without revealing precise location, followed by a volley of sharp hacks that deliver the intended message, whether that’s “stay away,” “predator nearby,” or “this patch is mine.” Males usually call from high perches at dawn or dusk, when forest air carries sound best.

Like other guenons, their calls are functionally referential, that is, specific sounds match specific events. Infants can make the right noises from birth, but learning when to use them takes time. Through trial, error, and social feedback, young monkeys eventually master the timing, context, and tone that let them effectively communicate with their troops. 

Alarm calls are the clearest example of this communication. Although better studied in Campbell’s monkeys, Lowe’s monkeys likely produce distinct sounds for different kinds of predators. When leopards (Panthera pardus) prowl, bark-like calls drive the group into trees and warn others. Rock pythons (Python sebae) striking from thickets provoke harsh, chuttering calls. Even snakes that usually prey on birds or rodents, like boomslangs (Dispholidus typus) and Gaboon vipers (Bitis gabonica), can trigger a full alarm. Raptors bring mixed responses: black kites (Milvus migrans) often draw no reaction, but common buzzards (Buteo buteo) send them diving into cover.

Far from being just hygiene, grooming is a way to convey reassurance, show alliances, and strengthen the bonds that hold the troop together. Two individuals sit close, one methodically parting the other’s fur to remove debris or parasites, sometimes pausing to nibble before continuing. The recipient usually stays still with half-closed eyes, occasionally shifting to present another area. This careful attention sustains the cooperative relationships essential for group survival.

Reproduction and Family

What scientists know about Lowe’s monkeys’ social lives comes from brief glimpses during field surveys and from comparisons with better-studied relatives in the mona monkey complex.

Males and females reach sexual maturity between 3 and 5 years of age, with females often maturing a little earlier. Once mature, they take part in a polygynous mating system, where one dominant male mates with multiple females.

Mating likely runs from June through December, coinciding with the transition from wet to dry seasons. Births peak between November and January, when fruit is most abundant and females have the energy reserves to carry and nurse young.

Female guenons don’t advertise estrus with bold, physical signs such as genital swelling. Instead, they may linger closer to the male, groom him more often, and make quiet overtures. Males pick up on these cues, trailing them closely, sniffing, and sometimes curling back the upper lip in a flehmen response, pulling scent deep into the vomeronasal organ to catch pheromones.

Young subadult males may be physically capable of breeding, but they rarely do so until they’ve left their birth group—and even then, the odds are stacked against them. Dominant males focus on fathering as many offspring as they can, but success hinges entirely on keeping their position, and they will defend their harems fiercely. His energy is therefore devoted to vigilance and to displays of aggression that preserve his status, taking precedence over rearing the young.

That responsibility falls entirely to mothers. They nurse, groom, carry, and socialize their infants without help. Alloparenting, where other females in the troop essentially babysit, isn’t common in guenons; if another monkey handles the baby, it’s brief and carefully supervised.

A single infant is born after a gestation period of 147 to 180 days (5-6 months), similar to other Cercopithecus species. Newborns are altricial, arriving underdeveloped with tufts of fur, partially closed eyes, and limited motor control beyond a powerful clinging reflex. Using both hands and feet, they hold fast to their mother’s belly while she travels, forages, and interacts with the troop during those first critical weeks.

At around three months, young begin tasting fruits, leaves, and invertebrates, though they continue nursing. Weaning is usually complete between six and twelve months, depending on seasonal food supply. Females generally raise one infant at a time, with births spaced about two years apart.

Photo credit: markhulme/iNaturalist/Creative Commons
Ecological Role

Ecologically, Lowe’s monkeys function as adaptable generalists. Their value lies not in performing one role exceptionally, but in reliably fulfilling several: controlling insect pests, dispersing seeds, occasionally pollinating, and serving as ecological bridge species that help connect fragmented forest systems.

The Upper Guinean Forest is one of the world’s most biologically rich yet most threatened tropical forest systems. Colonized by tall evergreen and moist semi-deciduous trees, its closed-canopy layers support over 9,000 plant species, many of which are endozoochorous—relying on animals to consume fruits and disperse seeds away from parent trees. This avoids the intense competition for light and nutrients that occurs when seeds fall directly beneath the parent. Key canopy species like African mahogany (Afzelia africana), Guinea plum (Parinari excelsa), and various figs (genus Ficus) depend entirely on this process for reproduction, as seeds that fall beneath parent trees face intense competition for light and nutrients.

While specialized frugivores like Diana monkeys may disperse seeds more efficiently per individual, many avoid degraded habitats or remain restricted to particular forest strata. Decades of logging, agriculture, and hunting have left the forest a patchwork of primary remnants, secondary growth, and forest–savanna mosaics that many seed dispersers cannot tolerate. Lowe’s monkeys, by contrast, move easily between canopy layers and make use of both pristine and disturbed environments. Their generalist diet and mobility mean they can support forest regeneration in areas where other primates (and the ecological services they provide) have vanished

Conservation Status and Threats

The Lowe’s monkey is classified as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN, 2019), appearing on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 

When last assessed in January of 2019, roughly 10,000 adult Lowe’s monkeys were surviving in decreasing, fragmented populations across the Eastern Guinean Forest ecoregion, primarily in southern Ghana and western Côte d’Ivoire. No subspecies of Cercopithecus lowei are currently recognized; thus, the IUCN status applies uniformly to the entire species.

This classification is based on an estimated population decline of more than 30% over the past three generations (30 years), a trend that continues today, driven primarily by habitat loss, fragmentation, and hunting for bushmeat.

Agricultural expansion, logging, urban development, and mining continue to fragment their forest habitat. In Côte d’Ivoire, forest cover declined from roughly 39 million acres (16 million hectares) at the beginning of the 20th century to less than 8 million acres (3 million hectares) today, largely due to slash-and-burn agriculture, commercial logging, gold mining, and road development. Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana together account for over 60% of global cocoa exports, much of it cultivated in former Lowe’s monkey habitat.

Lowe’s monkeys are hunted for bushmeat, both subsistence and commercial, which compounds the habitat pressures they face. Their loud, resonant dawn and dusk calls betray their locations to hunters, while their tolerance for forest edges near farms or settlements regularly brings them into range of humans, including their shotguns and snares. 

The illegal pet trade doesn’t directly target these primates, yet infants are sometimes captured alive after their mothers are killed for bushmeat. 

While cultural taboos in Ghana’s community-managed sanctuaries like Boabeng-Fiema have helped some populations persist, experts believe that even small additional losses could push the species to Endangered status.

Conservation Efforts

The Lowe’s monkey is listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), an international agreement between governments whose goal is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. This designation denotes that regulated trade of this species is permitted as long as it is shown to be sustainable.

Across its range, Lowe’s monkeys receive indirect protection through various laws and established park systems. In Ghana, the Wildlife Conservation Regulations (LI 685) prohibit the hunting of primates in protected areas and restrict their trade. Under the country’s Forest and Wildlife Policy, legally protected areas are required to enforce anti-hunting regulations and habitat preservation measures to help stabilize or increase local populations. Logging and hunting have been banned in the Kakum Conservation Area for the past few decades, and monkey populations appear to be recovering to where approximately 480 individuals live there. In Côte d’Ivoire, laws prohibit hunting primates in national parks and reserves such as Banco National Park and Taï National Park (a UNESCO World Heritage Site).

Some cultural beliefs have managed to shield Lowe’s monkeys in certain communities where traditional taboos provide protection in the absence of formal laws. For example, within the boundaries of the Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary, they are revered as sacred messengers or reincarnated ancestors. Harming them is taboo, eliminating the hunting pressures facing populations outside the sanctuary. Reverence for these monkeys is so strong that people will abandon farmland or homes if monkeys die nearby—a sign of ancestral disapproval. Unique to Boabeng-Fiema is the ceremonial burial of dead monkeys, laid to rest in small coffins by a priest who presides over the monkey cemetery. Eco-tourism has further incentivized locals to protect the approximately 350 Lowe’s monkeys in the small but secure ~1 million-acre (440-hectare) sanctuary.

For Lowe’s monkeys and many other primates, the main challenge in both countries hasn’t been the absence of laws but their uneven enforcement. In Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire, formal responsibility for protecting Lowe’s mona monkeys lies with national wildlife agencies, but many are routinely undermined by corruption and insufficient resources. Understaffed ranger services and lack of community involvement have left poaching, logging, and farming to continue within park boundaries despite laws forbidding these activities, reducing protected areas to mere “paper parks.” As a result of weak enforcement and low community buy-in, Lowe’s monkeys are believed to be locally extinct in Banco National Park, despite official protection.

Much of the on-the-ground conservation work comes from NGOs and community programs. Programs that actively involve local communities through education, economic incentives, or cultural traditions are notably more effective at maintaining long-term protection than creating forbidden areas that rely solely on underfunded state management. The most active dedicated group is West African Primate Conservation Action (WAPCA), founded in 2001 by Heidelberg Zoo. WAPCA works across Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire to address threats facing Lowe’s monkeys and other endangered primates through a mix of breeding centers for orphaned monkeys, habitat restoration, and outreach. They also offer alternative livelihoods for forest-fringe communities, providing opportunities for jobs in eco-tourism, craft cooperatives, and agroforestry training to reduce reliance on bushmeat hunting.

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Written by Alyssa Hanes, Aug 2025