The conservation status of slow lorises Nycticebus spp. in Singapore

Abstract

Historically, the greater slow loris Nycticebus coucang has proven to be an elusive animal in Singapore, evading even the prolific British colonial animal collectors. In recent decades, sightings of the slow loris have increased remarkably, and these have coincided with an increase in nocturnal surveys. Past trade-record discrepancies, as well as the sighting in the wild of a non-native slow loris species, point to the importance of Singapore for global slow loris conservation. The first ever ecological survey is documented in this paper, highlighting the difficulty of studying the slow loris in the wild, in habitats hemmed in by urban development, as well as the urgency of further work on Singapore's most poorly studied primate.