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Rhesus Macaques Were Detected Mostly Outside Forest in Three of Four Chandrabani Surveys

Rhesus macaque at Forest Research Institute in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India
Research · Ecology

Four line-transect surveys around Chandrabani in Dehradun, India, found rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) across both forest and human-modified habitats. The study covered a heterogeneous 16 km² area surrounding the Wildlife Institute of India campus, including forest patches, agricultural land, roadsides and settlements.

Surveys were carried out in February and November 2017 and in May and October 2019. The share of observed macaque individuals recorded in non-forest habitats was 72.7% in February 2017, 34.1% in November 2017, 76.6% in May 2019 and 57.1% in October 2019. Forest habitats therefore accounted for the larger share of detections only during the November 2017 survey. These percentages describe the observed individuals in each survey period; they are not density estimates for forest and non-forest habitat.

The macaques were detected throughout the study area during all four sampling periods. Agricultural fields, settlement edges and other human-modified habitats contributed substantially to the records, alongside natural forest.

The authors interpret the repeated use of both habitat types as evidence of the species’ ecological flexibility in the Himalayan foothills. The survey provides a local baseline for understanding how rhesus macaques use landscapes where forest, agriculture and human settlement occur in close proximity.

Sources and image credit

  1. Sawant, S. S., Sathyakumar, S., & Qureshi, Q. (2026). Observations on the Distribution of Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) in Chandrabani, Dehradun. Indian Forester, 152(6), 578–585. https://doi.org/10.36808/if/2026/v152i6/171313Primary research article published 25 August 2026. Four line-transect surveys in a 16 km² heterogeneous area around Chandrabani, Dehradun, recorded rhesus macaques in both forest and non-forest habitats. Non-forest detections accounted for 72.7%, 34.1%, 76.6% and 57.1% of observed individuals in February 2017, November 2017, May 2019 and October 2019, respectively; forest detections were higher only in November 2017.

Image: Harshanh — wild Rhesus Macaque at the Forest Research Institute in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India, 20 November 2013. Source: Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 3.0. Representative image from Dehradun; not identified as an animal from the survey. · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source

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