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Sep 25, 2024 · Are lemurs just another type of monkey or are they truly different primates? Let’s take a look and see what sets these creatures apart from each other. The fluffy-looking ruffed lemur shows off some vivid coloration.
- Female
- Writer
- Their Name Means Ghosts Or Spirits in Latin
- They’Re All in Madagascar!
- There Were Once Lemurs The Size of Gorillas
- There Is A 30g Lemur Too
- They Are Important Pollinators
- They Are (Maybe) Exceptionally Diverse
- Some Move Sideways
- They Smile
- They Are The only Other Primate with Blue Eyes
- They Have Small Brains
The name lemur comes from the Latin word lemures, which were ghosts that were exorcised during the Lemuria festival of ancient Rome. This name wasn’t actually in reference to a ghost-like appearance, or reflective eyes, or calls – but due to their nocturnal activity and slow movements.
There are lots and lots of lemur species. At least one hundred, in eight families and probably more than 15 genera. You’d think they would be spread out all over the tropics, but they’re all found in Madagascar. This is a great example of the unique diversity you can get when animals are cut off from their distant relatives by an island, or a mount...
Humans have a very consistent track record of wiping out large animals wherever they go. Despite being relatively close to the set-off point of early hominid exploration, Madagascar was somehow spared this nomadic wave of destruction for over 200,000 years. Humans finally found the island around 2,000 years ago, and in classic fashion, set to work ...
At the other end of the spectrum, there are tiny lemurs called mouse lemurs, who are also very diverse. These miniature lemurs weigh as little as 30g, and while they all look very similar, turn out to have exceptional genetic diversity. This is what’s known as cryptic speciation, in which animals hide their differences from people very well. In Lin...
Ruffed lemurs are considered to be the world’s largest pollinators. They help this process, by getting pollen on their noses while they eat nectar and tropical fruit, and spread it to other plants as they continue to forage. It’s thought the traveler’s palm tree in particular depends on lemurs.
Lemurs are some of the most diverse of the primate group. There are at least 100 species, and as we mentioned, even within the mouse lemur genus there is significant genetic diversity. At least, that’s what’s been made official. There are some critics who suggest that the naming of lemur species has become a bit of a sport, and this is an example o...
Sifakas have some excellent adaptations to tree-dwelling, to the point where they’re not very well-adjusted to moving along the ground. When they do have to cross terrestrial distances, the shape and tension of their body mean they are most efficient at leaping sideways.
In some non-human primates, pulling back the gums to show teeth could be considered a threat display. It’s basically a warning that you’re about to get bitten. So, it’s sort of weird that humans, as primates evolved to use smiling to indicate the very opposite. And so it is, if you were to smile at a chimpanzee, he might think you’re afraid. On the...
From studies of over 600 primate species, only two are known to have blue irises: blue-eyed black lemurs, also known as Sclater’s lemurs – and us, humans!
You’d think this would explain why they’re always smiling, but when researchers looked into the relatively tiny brain of a lemur they found that there really isn’t much difference between the cognitive abilities of a lemur and some of the fatter-headed primates like monkeys and great apes. Ever since humans discovered they have large brains relativ...
- Mostly arboreal
- Madagascar
- More than 30 years
- 27cm (11 inches) to 75cm (29inch)
Mar 11, 2024 · Originating from the isolated lands of Madagascar, lemurs have evolved into over a hundred species, each with unique characteristics. This article explores the different types of lemurs, highlighting their distinguishing features, habitats, behaviors, and diets.
- Modern Lemurs Range From 2.5 Inches to 2.5 Feet Tall. The smallest living lemur is the pygmy mouse lemur, which is less than 2.5 inches (6 centimeters) from head to toe—although its tail adds another 5 inches.
- A Lemur That Looked Like Alf Went Extinct 500 Years Ago. As a reminder of what's at stake for modern lemurs, some of the group's most unusual members have already died out in recent centuries.
- Lemur Society Is Run by Females. Female dominance over males is rare among mammals, including primates. But it's the norm for lemurs, researchers noted in a 2008 study, "occurring in all lemur families regardless of mating system."
- The Smarter a Lemur, the More Popular It Is. While it's been known for years that primates can learn new skills faster by studying their peers, a 2018 study published in Current Biology reveals that lemurs actually do it backward.
Mammals. Lemur guide: how many species there are, where they're found, and why so many are endangered. Endemic to Madagascar, lemurs are a fascinating group of primates which are closely related to lorises and bush babies. They face a range of threats, and 98% are deemed to be endangered.
The Lemur or Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur Catta) is a large prosimian (representing forms that were ancestral to monkeys, apes and humans), belonging to the family Lemuridae’. Like all other lemurs, it is found only on the island of Madagascar and the Comoros Islands off of the East Coast of Africa.
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Nov 3, 2021 · 1. Lemurs are not monkeys or apes. They are prosimians! Lemurs are prosimians — a group of primates that also includes lorises, bushbabies and tarsiers. Most prosimians are found on the...
