Gibbons are small and arboreal apes restricted to southeastern tropical and southern

subtropical regions in Asia. They are distributed from Assam in the northwest, eastward to south

China and Vietnam, south through the Malay Peninsula to Sumatra, Borneo, Java, and the Mentawai

Islands. Twenty-two genetically distinct populations of gibbons are generally recognized.

Gibbons were once widely distributed in China; however, they are now primarily restricted to

southern and southwestern Yunnan and Hainan Island. Their widest distribution and greatest species

diversity is in Yunnan Province. Gibbons are rare in China and are now listed as a first class endan-

gered species.

Four gibbon species inhabit Yunnan Province in southern China. They are  H. hoolock, H. lar,

H. leucogenys,  and  H. concolor.  There are three subspecies of  H. leucogenys: 1t. 1. leucogenys, H. l.

siki,  and  H. l. gabriellae.  Only  H. l. leucogenys  inhabits China. Four subspecies of  H. concolor  inhabit

China. These are  H. c. concolor, H. c. jingdongensis, 1-1. c. furvogaster,  and  H. c. hainanus.  The first

three subspecies inhabit Yunnan and  H. c. hainanus  is found only on Hainan Island.  H. laryunnanen-

sis  is the subspecies of  H. lar  in southern China.  H. hoolock leucogenys  is the subspecies of  H. hoolock

in southern China.  H. concolor jingdongensis, H. concolor furvogaster,  and  H. lar yunnanensis  are all

newly proposed subspecies by MA and WANG (1986).

The data on southern China gibbons presented here is based on an analysis of the skeletons and

skins of 49 specimens held at the Kunming Institute of Zoology, Kunming, Yunnan.