Lemur

Portrait of a Lemur One of the coolest lemur facts is that they can easily jump 6 times their body length. Lemurs are woolly-furred, long-tailed, arboreal animals that are found only on the island of Madagascar off the Eastern coast of Africa. There are more than 30 different species and dozens of subspecies of lemurs, ranging in size from the 1 ounce mouse lemur, to the 20 pound Indri. These creatures evolved undisturbed in an isolated environment for millions of years, and thrived in their island paradise until human beings came to Madagascar about 2000 years ago. Since then, people have destroyed over 90 percent of the natural forests, leaving the lemurs, as a group, the most endangered mammals in the world. Most lemurs are plant eaters that indulge in the tropical leaves, fruits, shoots and flowers of the island, while occasionally dining on insects, and possibly small reptiles and birds. They are social, active animals with remarkable athletic abilities, who can leap 30 feet or more from limb to limb using their powerful, long legs and strong gripping hands and feet. The long, thickly furred tail is not prehensile, but acts like a rudder as they fly through the air, and a signalling device while on the ground. Some species, such as the large, exquisitely black-furred Indri, are almost exclusively tree-dwelling, while the most recognizable species, the beautiful ring-tailed lemur, spends as much as 70 percent of the time on the ground, even sleeping in big, furry, comm...

If you want a pet, choose a domesticated animal – not a wild primate. Before bringing home any companion, make sure you have the time, money, and space to meet its needs. Even common domesticated animals can require highly specialized care. And in some species, like dogs, certain breeds are harder to care for than others. Photo of adoptable Tova by Assorted Poppies Photo for the Animal Protection Society of Durham, NC ( That lemur on Craigslist? Don’t be fooled – it makes a terrible pet By Will Goodwin, 2019 Communications Intern and Sara Clark It’s tough to look at a ring-tailed lemur and not get the urge to hold one. With their plush coats, black button noses, and raccoon-ish eyes, you can’t help but picture yourself taking one home and scratching behind his tufted ears. What’s surprising is how simple it is to do just that. In some states in the US, including North Carolina, it’s perfectly legal to own an animal as endangered and exotic as a lemur. In fact, there are an estimated 15,000 pet primates in the United States, What many people don’t realize is that, despite its legality, keeping a lemur as a pet can be devastating to both the animal and the owner. Here’s why: Lemurs are endangered Lemurs are the most endangered group of mammals on Earth, with 95% of species facing a high risk of extinction. Although illegal to keep as pets in Madagascar, thousands of lemurs have been illegally removed from their wild habitats and kept in-country as household pets or as touris...

Lemurs' ancestors arrived in Madagascar during the Eocene Epoch, possibly by rafting over from Africa on mats of vegetation. The lineage has diversified widely in the 50 million years since, evolving into roughly 100 species, each unique in both behavior and appearance. Like many native Malagasy species, though, habitat loss has caused Here are 10 unusual and beautiful lemurs that are in trouble. Artush / Getty Images The brown mouse lemur ( Microcebus rufus) is among the shortest-lived of all primates, with a lifespan of only about six to eight years in the wild and 10 to 15 years in captivity. It looks quite different from many other lemur species, too, with its reddish-brown dorsal and white ventral coloring (similar to a mouse's, hence the name). The nocturnal mammals inhabit the rainforests of eastern Madagascar, where they are vulnerable to extinction because of habitat loss due to slash-and-burn agriculture. Paul Souders / Getty Images The common brown lemur ( Eulemur fulvus) lives in a wide variety of forest types, from lowlands to mountains, evergreen forests to deciduous forests. This range likely factors into its status as vulnerable, rather than endangered or critically endangered, like so many of its lemur relatives. The species is mostly active during the day, but can be cathemeral, meaning it's active at varying times of the day and night depending on the season and availability of light. Its primary threat is habitat destruction, the result of a growing hum...

Here’s a fun fact – did you know that science considers Lemurs to be your distant cousin? Well, you may never find the resemblance when you look at one, or you may simply deny your ancestral relationship to a ring-tailed lemur. But the truth is that lemurs come from the same family as gorillas, monkeys, apes, chimps, etc. In other words, they are one of the members of the Are Lemurs Diurnal or Nocturnal? Life of Lemurs Well, to tell you the truth, we cannot help but start this section by stating that there’s an abundance of monkey-like traits in a lemur. But let’s learn all about this particular kind of primate before we start to compare it with similar animals. They are unique. Not just because of their appearance, but for their activities too. They belong to a separate branch of the endangered primate family tree – prosimians. One of their distinctive physical appearances includes having a tooth comb, which is a reformed incisor tooth on their lower jaw. See also Which Animals Eat Their Young? They also have a super-long grooming claw, which is a special claw on their second toe used for personal grooming. Lemurs have fantastic night vision, almost considered to be their superpower. This is because of the Tapetum Lucidum – the additional layer behind the retina of their eyes. This is known to enhance their night vision significantly. Speaking of superpowers, they also have a strong sense of smell. This helps them forage and communicate. But, do they like to move it, move...

Appearance The Ring-tailed lemur has a slender frame and narrow face, fox-like muzzle. Its long, bushy tail is ringed in alternating black and white transverse bands, numbering 12 or 13 white rings and 13 or 14 black rings, and always ending in a black tip. The total number of rings nearly matches the approximate number of caudal vertebrae (~25). Its tail is longer than its body and is not prehensile. Instead, it is only used for balance, communication, and group cohesion. The pelage (fur) is so dense that it can clog electric clippers. The ventral (chest) coat and throat are white or cream. The dorsal (back) coat varies from gray to rosy-brown, sometimes with a brown pygal patch around the tail region, where the fur grades to pale gray or grayish brown. The dorsal coloration is slightly darker around the neck and crown. The hair on the throat, cheeks, and ears is white or off-white and also less dense, allowing the dark skin underneath to show through. The muzzle is dark grayish and the nose is black, and the eyes are encompassed by black triangular patches. Facial vibrissae (whiskers) are developed and found above the lips (mystacal), on the cheeks (genal), and on the eyebrow (superciliary). Vibrissae are also found slightly above the wrist on the underside of the forearm. The ears are relatively large compared to other lemurs and are covered in hair, which has only small tufts if any. Although slight pattern variations in the facial region may be seen between individual...

Table of Contents • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • I often hear “So cute – I want it!” and “Where can I buy a lemur?” I get it. Lemurs are adorable, there’s no disputing that. But should you really get a pet lemur? Sadly, most of the diurnal (awake during the day) lemurs have been hunted out of this poor region where it’s too hot and dry for crops to reliably grow. Even the smaller, night-active lemurs can fall victim to bushmeat hunting. A True Story of Ring-Tailed Lemurs as Pets Photo by Magda Ehlers from Pexels I was grabbing a Three Horse Beer after a full week of fieldwork (THB is the only beer consistently available throughout Madagascar… I hope you like pilsners!). The bar owner’s son was trying to charm the “Vazaha,” – ‘foreigner’ in English. Despite desperately wanting to blend in, my curly blonde hair, freckles, and blue eyes didn’t allow for it. Many Malagasy (the local people) were curious. However, children sometimes ran away from me screaming. They’ve been told fairytales of pale monsters with blue eyes coming to eat them when they don’t behave! Tourists representing nearly every country in the world litter Mangily. They come from far and wide to visit its spectacular coral reef and bizarre spiny forests. When the son realized I wasn’t in his village as a tourist, but instead to research lemurs, he was delighted to tell me about his father’s pet lemurs. My heart sank at the news. His father was the previous mayor of the village. Pet lemurs are a status symbol fo...