A monkey that has striking pinkish-orange lips and a black face – and lives in the forests of the Democratic Republic of Congo – has been confirmed as a new species to science.<\/p>\n
The black-furred primate was spotted and photographed hidden away in the high tree canopy of dense tropical forests in Lomami National Park, in the central east of the country.<\/p>\n
Conservationists working there first reported seeing this unusual-looking animal back in 2008. But they captured just one blurry photograph.<\/p>\n
After another sighting 10 years later, an international team set out to find and study the monkey and revealed that it was a previously unknown species.<\/p>\n
This is only the fifth African monkey species to be discovered in the last 75 years. <\/p>\n
Junior Amboko, a PhD student at Florida Atlantic University, played a leading role in the search, which involved audio recordings, photography and detailed genetic studies.<\/p>\n