False Potto - Distribution and Status

Distribution and Status

According to records in the Anthropological Institute and Museum, AMZ 6698, the holotype, is from "Equatorial Africa", and AMZ-AS 1730 is from the "Cameroons". According to mammalogist Ronald Nowak, these designations imply that the latter came either from modern Cameroon or far eastern Nigeria and the former from Cameroon or a neighboring state. In 1999, Simon Bearder claimed, citing a personal communication by C. Wild, that Pseudopotto had been seen in the wild and in 2001, ornithologist Christopher Bowden noted the occurrence of Pseudopotto on Mount Kupe in Cameroon, also citing C. Wild. However, the IUCN Red List notes that while sightings of the false potto at 820 to 940 m (2690 to 3080 ft) on Mount Kupe had been reported, surveys had failed to confirm its occurrence there, though pottos, some with long tails, had been found. The false potto is not listed separately from the potto in the Red List, because the evidence that it is a distinct species is considered insufficient.