Owl-faced guenon  (Cercopithecus hamlyni)

Guenons are vulnerable to both the bushmeat trade and human disruption of forests. Destruction of forest habitat throughout its range continues due to agricultural expansion and logging (6). Logging operations result in an increase in workers in the area, causing an increased demand for bushmeat, and logging roads make remote forests more accessible to hunters seeking meat to sell in local markets. In central and west Africa, a guenon carcass can fetch the equivalent of US $5 (7). Forests surrounding Mount Kahuzi are under increasing pressure from rapidly rising human populations. An influx of Rwandan refugees in 1994 and rebel soldiers from 1997 resulted in widespread forest clearance for agriculture and hunting (8). The year 2000 also saw a rush for the valuable industrial mineral coltan, which attracted more than 10,000 miners to the Kahuz-Biéga National Park in which Mount Kahuzi lies, and led to drastic deforestation and poaching (8).

The owl-faced guenon can be found within a number of protected areas, such as the Okapi Faunal Reserve and the Kahuzi-Biéga National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo (8) (9), but as mentioned above, these generally offer only nominal protection. This species is likely to benefit from the increased protection and management of these areas, but at present, the situation in this volatile region is often too dangerous for action to be taken.