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Ring-Tailed Lemurs: Habits and Conservation Challenges
- 1. Ring-Tailed Lemurs By Kelly Erwin 08-December-2014
- 3. Found in the wild only in Madagascar. Scientists think lemur ancestors traveled from Africa to the island on natural rafts about 60,000 years ago.
- 4. Habitat: Ring-tails live in the southeastern section of Madagascar in habitats ranging from sub-alpine forest to savannahs. Habitat loss is a major problem for all lemurs: •Burning for charcoal •Logging (mostly illegal) •Competition with domestic animals
- 5. Communication • Visual • Vocalizations • Olfactory Scent is used to identify troop members and to mark territory Facial expressions Ring-Tailed Lemur Sounds Researchers have recorded 28 different ring-tailed lemur vocalizations
- 6. Food & Foraging •Ring-tails wake up early to spend their day foraging for food. •Their favorite food is the fruit of the tamarind tree. •The tree and the lemur have a special relationship: ring-tails are key to seed dispersal Social Behavior •Lemurs live in troops of 3 to 25 individuals •Females are dominant •Males stay with troop until they reach sexual maturity when they leave to join other groups
- 7. Reproductive Behavior • Males engage in ‘stink’ fights over females • Females do the selecting • Short breeding season – 1-3 weeks • Females are only receptive for ~ 36 hours • Subordinate males often successful in breeding • Females may breed with multiple males • Gestation is 133-144 days • Generally Single births Infants: •Blue eyes at birth •Able to cling to mother •Begin moving around mother’s body by day 3 •Start climbing at 3 weeks •Eat solid food at 6 weeks •Fully weaned by 6 months
- 8. Conservation Status: Threatened Challenges: •Hunted for food •Kept as pets •Habitat destruction • Slash & burn agriculture • Overgrazing • Charcoal production •Domestic animals, especially dogs, attack lemurs •Political instability Future Status: •More conservation areas in Madagascar may help but political upheavals and widespread poverty must be overcome before true gains will occur. •Establishment of NGOs (non-governmental organizations) to work with local population on developing solutions that benefit people and animals
- 9. A final story: Freddy, a ring-tail lemur with a happy ending Freddy was born in 1998. He was a kept as a pet in a Meth Lab where he was undernourished and in poor shape. Fortunately he was rescued and came to live in the St. Louis Zoo. He now lives in a mixed black and ring-tailed lemur habitat with other ‘special’ lemurs. This group of misfits includes other animals who were hand-reared and don’t seem to realize they are lemurs. The female ring-tails are very tolerant of Freddy allowing him to sit too close without swatting him away. Freddy’s favorite food is grapes and he is very focused on people. If you visit the Zoo stop by and say hello – Freddy is on display in the primate house for the winter.
- 10. A final story: Freddy, a ring-tail lemur with a happy ending Freddy was born in 1998. He was a kept as a pet in a Meth Lab where he was undernourished and in poor shape. Fortunately he was rescued and came to live in the St. Louis Zoo. He now lives in a mixed black and ring-tailed lemur habitat with other ‘special’ lemurs. This group of misfits includes other animals who were hand-reared and don’t seem to realize they are lemurs. The female ring-tails are very tolerant of Freddy allowing him to sit too close without swatting him away. Freddy’s favorite food is grapes and he is very focused on people. If you visit the Zoo stop by and say hello – Freddy is on display in the primate house for the winter.