A Tail That Rings?

Thursday, January 16, 2025

A Tail That Rings?

Today’s special animal friend is the ring-tailed lemur, Lemur catta. It is the only member of the Lemur genus. Lemurs belong to the order Primata, like us, and include eight families with fifteen genera and around 100 species. All of them are native to the island of Madagascar, where the mountainous terrain and highly variable climate has produced great diversity. Taxonomists are confused regarding the relationships in the “strepsirrhini” suborder. Most lemurs are arboreal and nocturnal, but not the ring-tailed lemur, which is diurnal and the most terrestrial of lemurs, spending up to 1/3 of its time on the ground.

They are found in southern and southwestern Madagascar in deciduous forests, montane humid forests, gallery forests (along river banks), and scrub, at altitudes up to about 2,000 feet. They are omnivorous, eating mainly the fruit and leaves of the tamarind tree, but opportunistically up to three dozen different plant species, as well as insects, arachnids, birds, and small reptiles. Native predators are the fossa (Cryptoprocta ferox), boa, and birds of prey. Introduced predators include the Indian civet, dogs, and cats.

Male ring-tailed lemurs can weigh up to 6 lbs., while females are smaller. Their tails, which can be up to 2 feet long, are longer than the head-body length. The tails are used for balance and signaling and are not prehensile. The tail will have 12 or 13 white bands and 13 or 14 black bands, always ending with a black tip. The fur of their backs and shoulders is gray to grayish-brown, and the throat and chest are white or cream. Their skin is dark brown or black and is visible on their hands and feet, genitals, and nose. The soles of the hands and feet are leathery and flexible, and the feet have opposable big toes.

Ring-tailed lemurs have a matriarchal social structure in which a dominant female and her female offspring are the core members of a group of up to 30 adults, adolescents, and infants. Adult males will mate with one or more of the females. If mating opportunities are insufficient, a male will leave and seek a friendlier group. Young males leave their maternal group at about 3 years old. Ring-tailed lemurs are more vocal than most other primates, producing a wide variety of sounds.

Females usually give birth to one incredibly cute baby, but twins are born occasionally born. They are weaned after about five months. It is estimated that only 50% survive their first year, and around 30% reach adulthood. Their lifespan in the wild is about 16 years, but they have lived over 25 years in captivity, where breeding programs are extremely successful in zoos around the world. Experiments have shown that they are as intelligent as many simian (apes/monkeys) primates.

Ring-tailed lemurs are rated Endangered by IUCN, with around 2,000 individuals believed to be extant in the wild. Habitat loss is the main threat, as well as live capture for the pet trade and hunting for “bush meat.” Several major national parks in Madagascar are maintaining populations and providing opportunities for the international science community to contribute to conservation.

In the United States, the Duke Lemur Center is a hotspot of lemur study and education:

A Coquerel's sifaka lemur (Propithecus coquereli) named Jovian was a resident of the Duke Lemur Center who played Zoboomafoo on the eponymous television program featuring the Kratt brothers, Martin and Chris. The TSAF motto “Make an animal friend today!” comes from this program. Martin and Chris Kratt went on to star in other children’s nature programming. Jovian died in 2014 at the age of 20 and has living descendants:

Coquerel’s sifaka is critically endangered.