关键词: 灵长类历史地理, 中国, 长臂猿, 影响因素

Abstract: Gibbon (Hylobatidae spp. )is the only hominoid inhabiting China,and it is the genus which has died out most rapidly in the modern history of China. Research on the historical distribution of gibbons and the factors affecting their distribution, however,are rather limited. Based on ancient literature,in this paper we probe into regional changes in the distribution of gibbons in China dating back to Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644). Our results show that the distribution area of gibbons not only shrank towards the southwest,but also in other several regions until gibbons now can be found. Gibbons now survive only in southwestern China and Hainan Island. Although reasons of for the habitat decrease are multiple,among them,the human disturbance matters significantly.

Key words: China, Gibbon (Hylobatidae spp ), Influencing factors, Primate historical geography