Chromosomes of thecercopithecus aethiops species group:C. aethiops (Linnaeus, 1758),C. cynosurus (Scopoli, 1786),C. pygerythrus (Cuvier, 1821), andC. sabaeus (Linnaeus, 1766)

Abstract

The banded karyotypes of 34 monkeys of known geographic origin and belonging to the Cercopithecus aethiops group of species (C. aethiops, C. pygerythrus, C. cynosurus, C. sabaeus) show that chromosome evolution in this group is highly conservative. All species have 2n =60 chromosomes with very similar chromosome banding. However, differences were found both within and between species. A polymorphism of the NOR area of the “marked” chromosome pairs was found in all taxa (9 of 34 animals). All individuals referred to C. sabaeus,from both West Africa and the Barbados, are characterized by having highly positive G- and C- banded terminal sequences on chromosomes 7,10,12, and 14. Outgroup comparisons with other primates and a parsimony analysis suggest that these terminal bands are derived and are probably good taxonomic and phylogenetic indicators. Moreover, chromosome 18 is variable both between and within species in G banding and in short-arm length. The existence of within-species variation in karyotypes suggests that karyological comparisons must be based on adequate samples that include specimens coming from all the major geographic populations of the species concerned.