Wildlife Alliance

Slow Loris (Nycticebus coucang)

Status: Vulnerable

Habitat Range:

This species is found in Bangladesh, Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam. In India the Slow Loris is found in the states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, and Meghalaya. Isolated populations appear to have also survived deforestation in Singapore. They reside primarily in the main tree canopy of tropical Southeast Asian rainforests.. They are rarely observed out of the treetops, but when witnessed on the ground, they move with a wavering trot.

Numbers Left in the Wild: Unknown

Primary Threats:

Predators include cats, sun bears, and Paradoxurus (palm civets). A major threat of the Slow Loris is often being out-competed by arboreal monkeys in their overlapping territories. Humans also pose a serious threat to the Slow Loris because of legends about the use of them in folkloric medicine as cures and as luck charms. These beliefs are very difficult to change. There fur is also used to make clothing.

What we are doing to help:

• Wildlife Alliance's Care for Rescued Wildlife Program cares for many rescued Slow Lorises that have been victims of the illegal wildlife trade.
  
  
• In Thailand, Wildlife Alliance's Sold Out Campaign puts up billboards in markets where wildlife trade in exotic pets is heavily desireable. The idea is to target an relatively affluent audience who may not realize their inadvertent support of the trade by purchasing a Slow Loris as a pet.