The Tropical Andes Biodiversity Hotspot holds a remarkable amount of species at risk of extinction due to climate change and human activities. One of these species, the Critically Endangered yellow-tailed woolly monkey (Lagothrix flavicauda), has experienced alterations in its known geographical range, along with a recent sighting in the region Junín, 206 kilometers south of previous observations, calling for a re-evaluation of potential suitable habitat. In this thesis, I fit, evaluate, and apply predictions of a habitat suitability model within the country of Peru. I used a generalized linear modeling approach across various range constraints, incorporating bioclimatic variables, forest cover, distance to cities and elevation as predictor variables. Precipitation features most strongly influencing observations of species presence in my model and evaluation measures showed the elevation-constrained model accuracy to be around 95%. Habitat suitability maps illustrate novel areas of potentially suitable habitat in central Huánuco, Pasco, and limited areas in Junín. The newly discovered population was found to be in an area of low suitability, calling for further investigation of the species in this area. Areas of suitable habitat should be surveyed to decrease bias in occurrence data, increasing the accuracy of habitat modeling for this species. Surveying these areas may also reveal corridors of gene flow between these populations, and could facilitate landscape genetics studies to characterize the viability of this taxon. Better characterization of the true distribution of the species will provide information to conservation stakeholders in priority areas, helping to protect this species and associated threatened wildlife.

Orientador: Lígia Souza Lima Silveira da Mota / Resumo: Este trabalho relata preliminarmente, a caracterização genética de primatas da espécie Lagothrix cana (macacos-barrigudos cinza), por meio de sequenciamento genético e análise de DNA mitocondrial do segmento D-Loop, após extração do DNA com a utilização da técnica do fenol/clorofórmio. Aliado a isso, é reportada uma revisão bibliográfica acerca dos dados anatômicos, fisiológicos, clínicos, reprodutivos e comportamentais, já disponíveis em literatura especializada sobre a espécie. Também, é validado um protocolo de contenção farmacológica executável e eficiente para procedimentos da rotina dos profissionais que desenvolvem ações, na área de medicina da conservação e atuam com primatas cativos deste gênero. Foram utilizados 21 primatas adultos da espécie Lagothrix cana (macaco-barrigudo), pesando 5,24 ± 1,66 kg, sendo 14 fêmeas e sete machos, para a validação deste protocolo. Os fármacos utilizados foram a tiletamina, o zolazepam, a atropina e a detomidina, em associação, com suas doses calculadas por meio de extrapolação alométrica interespecífica. Os fármacos foram combinados numa preparação concentrada que foi denominada “ZAD-50” (Zoletil/50® + Atropina + Detomidina), obtendo-se volume final exato de 3,0 ml de ZAD-50, com a associação de fármacos numa concentração que permite a contenção farmacológica de um mamífero placentário que pese 10,0 Kg com um volume de 0,6 ml, por exemplo. 567 pares de bases de DNA mitocondrial foram utilizadas, e conseguiu-se caracterizar os indiví... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: This manuscript reports, at first, the genetic characterization of primates Lagothrix cana (“gray wooly-monkeys”), by means of DNA sequencing and mitochondrial DNA analysis of the D-Loop section, after the extraction with the phenol/chloroform method, described by Sambrook e Russel (2001). In addition, is related a wide vision of the scientific data available bibliographic about the anatomical, physiological, medical, reproductive and behavioural existing data, about the specie. Also is related a performable and efficient chemical restraint protocol to permit usual procedures for professionals of conservation medicine, who works with captive primates of Lagothrix sp. genus. The study evaluate the chemical restraint and field anesthesia of 21 wooly-monkeys (Lagothrix cana: Atelidae) weighing 5,24 ± 1,66 kg, being fourteen female and seven male. There was employed the combination of tiletamine, zolazepam, atropine, and detomidine, in allometrically scaled dosages. The drugs were combined in a concentrate preparation called “ZAD-50” (Zoletil/50® + Atropine + Dormiun-V®). and give an accurate final volume of 3.0 mL of ZAD-50, with the combination of drugs at a concentration that allows the pharmacological restraint of a placental mammal weighing 10.0 kg with a volume of 0.6 ml, for example. 567 base pairs of mitochondrial DNA samples was utilized and was realized the classification of the specimens as Lagothrix cana, after the comparison with L. poepigii and L. lagothricha data. ... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor