Death Row

As far as we know, no primate became extinct during the 20th century. That's an impressive record, since the world loses about 100 species a day. But luck may soon run out for the animal order that includes humans. As their habitats are destroyed by human population growth, dozens of our closest relatives--from the gorillas in the mists of East Africa to the wise-looking orangutans of Sumatra--are on the brink of oblivion. Sounding the alarm are Conservation International, a private environment group based in Washington, and the Primate Specialist Group of the Species Survival Commission of IUCN/the World Conservation Union, an international alliance of public and private organizations. Together they compiled a list of the 25 most endangered primates. These pages offer an exclusive look at that diverse cast of simians least likely to survive the new century. Some are so rarely seen that no photos exist; all we have are drawings. Some may be gone before we get a good look at them. Others may disappear before we knew they existed. Might one of them offer clues about how humans evolved? Or harbor natural antibodies that could fight aids or cancer? We may never know. And here's an even more disturbing question: How long will Earth be a hospitable place for humanity when it is no longer a fit home for our next of kin?

1 GOLDEN LION TAMARIN
HOME Brazil's Atlantic Forest
POPULATION 800 in the wild
Prized by zoos, it became the focus of an international breeding program led by the Smithsonian Institution that has produced a captive population of 500

2 GOLDEN-CROWNED SIFAKA
HOME Madagascar
POPULATION fewer than 5,000
Discovered in 1974 by Ian Tattersall of the American Museum of Natural History, it is crowded by human settlers and besieged by gold miners

3 DRILL
HOME West Africa
POPULATION unknown
Hunted for its meat, it is considered the top primate-conservation priority in the region

4 YELLOW-TAILED WOOLLY MONKEY
HOME The tropical Andes in Peru
POPULATION fewer than 5,000
First known only for its skin, used by Peruvian muleteers as saddle covers, this monkey disappeared for more than four decades before being rediscovered in the 1970s

5 MOUNTAIN GORILLA
HOME Congo, Rwanda, Uganda
POPULATION about 320
Studied by Dian Fossey and caught in the cross fire of regional warfare, the world's largest primate has become irresistible to tourists and critically endangered

6 SILKY SIFAKA
HOME Madagascar
POPULATION fewer than 1,000
One of the largest lemurs, it is known to inhabit only two protected areas of rain forest

7 DELACOUR'S LANGUR
HOME Vietnam
POPULATION about 200
It has become a favorite target of hunters because its bones, organs and tissues are used in traditional medicines

8 TONKIN SNUB-NOSED MONKEY
HOME Vietnam
POPULATION 100 to 200
Much rarer than its Chinese snub-nosed cousins, it was considered possibly extinct until it was rediscovered in 1989

9 HAINAN GIBBON
HOME China
POPULATION fewer than 50
It is known only on the island of Hainan, but there is hope that other populations will be found on the mainland

10 CAT BA ISLAND GOLDEN-HEADED LANGUR
HOME Vietnam
POPULATION 100 to 200
Appealing to hunters because its organs are reputed to have medicinal powers, it may find a safer future as a tourist attraction

11 JAVAN GIBBON
HOME Indonesia
POPULATION 300 to 400
It hangs on precariously in a handful of national parks on Java, one of the world's most densely populated islands

12 BLACK LION TAMARIN
HOME Brazil's Atlantic Forest
POPULATION 900 or more
Thought to have become extinct because it hadn't been seen for decades, it was rediscovered in 1970 in the forests of Morro do Diabo State Park

13 NORTHERN MURIQUI
HOME Brazil's Atlantic Forest
POPULATION about 300
The largest remaining group, consisting of more than 100 animals, has been protected for 50 years by Feliciano Miguel Abdala, a private landowner

14 CROSS RIVER GORILLA
HOME Nigeria, Cameroon
POPULATION 150 to 200
Found in the forested hills along the border between the two countries, it was recognized as a subspecies distinct from other West African gorillas only last year

15 SCLATER'S GUENON
HOME Nigeria
POPULATION 2,000 to 3,000
Hurt by hunting, farming, logging, firewood collecting and oil-industry operations, it is protected only in two villages, where it is considered sacred

16 WHITE-NAPED MANGABEY
HOME Ghana, Ivory Coast
POPULATION 2,000 to 3,000
So common in the 1950s that it was considered a crop pest, it is found in only a fraction of the forests it once roamed

17 PERRIER'S SIFAKA
HOME Madagascar
POPULATION 1,000 to 2,000
Pressured by agriculture, logging and mining for gemstones, it may have vanished from one of two reserves where it is protected

18 GRAY-SHANKED DOUC LANGUR
HOME Vietnam
POPULATION fewer than 1000
Once considered just a variant of its black- and red-shanked cousins, it is thought to be distinct and critically endangered

19 MISS WALDRON'S RED COLOBUS
HOME Ghana, Ivory Coast
POPULATION unknown
If an African expedition turns up no evidence of this colobus, it may have been the only primate to become extinct in the 20th century