Paracolobus is an extinct genus of primate closely related to the living colobus monkeys. It lived in eastern Africa in the Pliocene and Early Pleistocene.[1] Fossils have been found in Kenya and Ethiopia, in places such as the Omo valley.[2]
Species of Paracolobus were large monkeys; P. chemeroni is estimated to have weighed between NaNkg (-2,147,483,648lb),[3] while P. mutiwa and the comparatively small P. enkorikae have been estimated at 39kg (86lb) and 9kg (20lb), respectively.[4] Compared to another giant monkey Cercopithecoides, Paracolobus had a longer face and deeper jaws. It had a longer cranium, broader muzzle, wider face and longer nasal bone than its closest relative, the extinct Rhinocolobus.[5] Its dentition was similar to modern colobus monkeys, indicating a largely folivorous diet. Despite its large size, it was probably arboreal like its modern relatives.