NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Purple-faced Langur
Semnopithecus vetulus (Erxleben, 1777)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The purple-faced langur (Semnopithecus vetulus), also known as the purple-faced leaf monkey, is a species of Old World monkey that is endemic to Sri Lanka. The animal is a long-tailed arboreal species, identified by a mostly brown appearance, dark face (with paler lower face) and a very shy nature. The species was once highly prevalent, found in suburban Colombo and the "wet zone" villages (areas with high temperatures and high humidity throughout the year, whilst rain deluges occur during the monsoon seasons), but rapid urbanization has led to a significant decrease in the population level of the monkeys. It had traditionally been classified within the genus Trachypithecus but was moved to the genus Semnopithecus based on DNA evidence indicating that is it more closely related to the gray langurs.
In Sinhala, it is known as ශ්රී ලංකා කළු වඳුරා [kalu ʋaⁿd̪uraː] (Sri Lanka black monkey).
Wikipedia contributors, Purple-faced langur; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:36:14.662513+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Semnopithecus vetulus (Erxleben, 1777)
- Name authority
- (Erxleben, 1777)
- Common name
- Purple-faced Langur
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Primates
- Family
- Cercopithecidae
- Genus
- Semnopithecus
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderPrimates Linnaeus, 1758
- suborderHaplorrhini Pocock, 1918
- infraorderSimiiformes Haeckel, 1866
- superfamilyCercopithecoidea Gray, 1821
- familyCercopithecidae Gray, 1821
- subfamilyColobinae Jerdon, 1867
- tribePresbytini Gray, 1825
- genusSemnopithecus Desmarest, 1822
- speciesSemnopithecus vetulus (Erxleben, 1777)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Semnopithecus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Bengal Sacred LangurSemnopithecus entellus (Dufresne, 1797) | CercopithecidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Tarai Gray LangurSemnopithecus hector (Pocock, 1928) | CercopithecidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Black-footed Gray LangurSemnopithecus hypoleucos Blyth, 1841 | CercopithecidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Chamba Sacred LangurSemnopithecus ajax (Pocock, 1928) | CercopithecidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Hooded Leaf MonkeySemnopithecus johnii (J. Fischer, 1829) | CercopithecidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Tufted Gray LangurSemnopithecus priam Blyth, 1844 | CercopithecidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Trachypithecus vetulus (Erxleben, 1777) (Erxleben, 1777) | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=944269 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4WHJB. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.