The ring-tailed lemur is the most exotic primate

One of the animal kingdom’s most fascinating primates is the ring-tailed lemur. Notable for its eye-catching black-and-white striped tail, this unusual animal is distinguished by its exotic look and fascinating habits.

The ring-tailed lemur is endemic to the island of Madagascar, where it is found in a variety of habitats such as forests, arid regions, and even mountainous regions. Its social structure and daily activities show a world of vocal communication, playfulness, and teamwork.

The ring-tailed lemur, despite its natural beauty, has come to represent Madagascar’s abundant biodiversity. Since this species is sadly also endangered, conservation efforts are more crucial than ever.

Characteristic	Description
Scientific Name	Lemur catta
Native Habitat	Madagascar
Diet	Fruits, leaves, insects
Distinctive Feature	Long, striped tail
Social Behavior	Lives in groups, led by females
Lifespan	Up to 18 years in the wild
Conservation Status	Endangered

Scientific classification

• Kingdom: Animalia (animals)
• Type: Chordata (chordates)
• Class: Mammalia (mammals)
• Order: Primates (primates)
• Family: Lemuridae (lemurs)
• Genus: Lemur (ring-tailed lemurs)
• Species: Lemur catta (ring-tailed lemur)

Additional names: ring-tailed lemur, maki, and catta.

Range of distribution

Geographical distribution

Madagascar is the only location where members of the Lemuroidea superfamily, which includes ring-tailed lemurs, can be found living in the wild. The island of Madagascar, the fourth largest in the world, is situated in the Indian Ocean and is situated southeast of Africa. It is divided from the continent by the 800 km wide Mozambique Channel.

Only the southern and southwestern regions of the island are home to ring-tailed lemurs; they extend to the northern border close to the towns of Ambalavao on the east coast and Morondava on the west coast. The city of Tolagnaro on the southern coast serves as the southeast border.

On St. Catherine Island, Georgia, ring-tailed lemurs were also imported into the United States as part of an initiative to establish a free-ranging population for research purposes and possibly as a source for future reserve replenishment in Madagascar parks.

Roughly two thousand ring-tailed lemurs live in captivity. Scientists’ estimates of the size of the wild population range from 10,000 to 100,000 individuals, but the exact number is unknown.

• Biogeographic regions: Madagascar
• Type of animal: island endemic

Habitat

A mountain range that stretches the entire length of the island, from north to south, divides the 1650 km island of Madagascar. Madagascar is divided into two halves by this mountain range, with the eastern and western regions having different climates, topographies, and vegetation. The southeast region of the island is home to ring-tailed lemurs, which can be found in a variety of environments such as tropical, subalpine, deciduous, and gallery forests with prickly bushes at elevations ranging from sea level to 2,600 meters.

Periodic droughts affect the southwest of Madagascar, which could have detrimental effects on ring-tailed lemurs and other island residents in the future.

A large portion of the ring-tailed lemur’s natural habitat has been destroyed by human activities like clearing for farming, burning for charcoal, and deforestation for urbanization. The island’s ring-tailed lemur population is distributed unevenly because they need at least some forest cover.

Home area

A group of ring-tailed lemurs will stay in one area of their home range for three or four days before moving on to another. A group’s home range is approximately one kilometer on average.

Pictured by Stephane Masson

The average size of the home range is between 0.1 and 350 km², and it varies based on the habitat. In arid regions, the average size of a catta’s personal territory is 32 km², while in wetter habitats, the average size is only 17 km².

Because resources are scarce during the dry season, makos extend their home ranges seasonally. There are certain areas that are only utilized by one group of ring-tailed lemurs, and the ranges of multiple groups overlap.

The quality of habitat is also correlated with population density. In comparison to dry regions where the density can only reach 17 individuals per square kilometer, wetter areas have up to 350 ring-tailed lemurs per square kilometer.

Distinguishing features

Appearance

The catta is easily identified by its long tail, which is roughly 60 cm long and has bands of alternating black and white rings on it. With light gray or gray-brown limbs, the remainder of the body is colored light reddish-gray to dark reddish-brown.

The insides of the limbs and the belly of ring-tailed lemurs are white. These primates have white faces with mask-like triangular patches surrounding the eyes that are either dark brown or black. The eyes have a light brown color. The muzzle has a black tip. The ring-tailed lemur bears angular, white ears that resemble cat ears.

Image courtesy of Rafael Medina

Male ring-tailed lemurs have dark scent glands with a nail that resembles a spur, known as a horny spur, on the inside of their wrists. In addition to anogenital scent glands, males also have scent glands on their chest, slightly above the collarbone, and close to their armpits.

Unlike other members of the Lemuroidea superfamily, ring-tailed lemurs have specialized teeth in their lower jaw that form a dentition comb, giving them unique dental characteristics. It is believed that this specialized dentition, which consists of long, narrow teeth that emerge nearly straight from the jaw, helps with grooming.

Dimensions

In the wild, the length of a male is approximately 42.5 cm from the head to the rump, and the average weight is 2.2 kg. Females are about the same size. Male ring-tailed lemurs in captivity average 2.7 kg, while females average 2.68 kg. This is a slight increase in weight from their wild counterparts.

The ring-tailed lemur’s remarkable appearance, distinct social behaviors, and habitat make it one of the most exotic primates. This lemur is a unique species that is native to the forests and deserts of Madagascar. It is distinguished by its long tail, which is striped in black and white. It is a fascinating animal to watch and learn about, capturing the interest of animal lovers all over the world with its colorful appearance and energetic personality.

Diet

Because their habitat is seasonal, wild ring-tailed lemurs have to make use of a wide range of food sources all year round. To put it best, they are opportunistic omnivores. Aside from mud from termite mounds, they also consume ripe fruits, leaves, stems, flowers, exudates, spiders, cobwebs, caterpillars, cicadas, insect cocoons, birds, and chameleons.

Tamarind is a dependable, year-round food source for maquis, making it one of their most important food sources. For ring-tailed lemurs, dates are regarded as a keystone food source because they can supply up to 50% of their daily needs.

A possible major problem is water availability in the driest areas of their range. Water can be obtained by ring-tailed lemurs from succulents (cactus and aloe), dew on leaves, and water gathered in crevices like tree hollows.

Rainfall totals and vegetation availability are directly correlated. Roughly from October to April, during the rainy season, ring-tailed lemurs can access fruits and young leaves. Fruit availability peaks in October and November and in March and April. Almost the only fruit available during the dry season is dates. Another significant food source is flowers, which are most abundant right before the rainy season. Ring-tailed lemurs consume dry, dried leaves that are more difficult to digest during the dry season, when even mature leaves may be in short supply. The animals are under the most nutritional stress at this time.

Lifestyle and behavior

The most terrestrial lemur species is the ring-tailed lemur. These primates move by walking or running on all fours, holding their tail nearly vertically and bending its tip into the shape of a question mark.

Every night, one group divides into two sleeping groups and cuddles up together to sleep. They rise early in the morning and congregate in the forest’s open spaces to start their day. Up until roughly 9 a.m., ring-tailed lemurs "sunbathe." Ring-tailed lemurs sit with their limbs elongated to the sides and their bellies facing the sun. This posture guarantees that the body, which has cooled down after a chilly night or morning, receives the most exposure to the sun’s rays.

After that, the animals start looking for food. In the afternoon, the group once more takes to the shade for a brief respite; on the hottest days, this lasts up to four hours. Following a hearty midday meal, the whole gang heads back to the "sleeping" tree, where they spend the entire night together. During this time, though, people are free to roam around the tree, take care of themselves, and socialize with other group members. Maki are therefore active all day long.

Social structure

Ring-tailed lemurs have between 11 and 17 individuals in their groups, consisting of multiple males and females. Since males emigrate to new groups and females almost always stay in their natal groups, there is a strict matriarchal hierarchy within the group.

Duke Lemur Center in picture

Adult females are always in charge of adult males, and they maintain this position of power through aggressive interactions in which they lunge, chase, grab, and bite males. Such aggressive behavior can be met with submissive responses like jumping, fleeing, and squealing. Female ring-tailed lemurs have a nonlinear hierarchy; daughters fight independently for their own ranking rather than inheriting it from their mother.

Compared to females, males have a different dominance hierarchy. Age and ranking among men are correlated. Usually between the ages of six and nine, the leading males are in their "prime."

A group of ring-tailed lemurs travels in a procession, with females, juveniles, and dominant males leading the way and lower-ranking males arriving last. Low-ranking males stay on the group’s periphery, foraging by themselves or resting with the group once they’ve arrived at their destination and are either resting or feeding.

Being a high-ranking male has several advantages, including more social interaction with dominant females, which can offer advantages like:

• reduced risk of predation;
• greater access to food resources;
• greater chance of mating with reproductively receptive females.

Communication and perception

Image courtesy of Rafael Medina

For ring-tailed lemurs, olfactory, visual, and vocal communication are crucial. They are among the most talkative apes. There are 28 distinct call types; adults use 22 of them, while infants use 6. They can be heard 750–1000 meters away when they call.

Furthermore, ring-tailed lemurs employ a range of visual cues, such as facial expressions and body postures. They also have fragrant glands, which are used for tags, on their wrists and chest.

During the wedding season, there is a lot of direct competition between men. Males rub their tails against their inside wrists and chests during a "smelly fight." They then waved their tails in the direction of the adversary, bent above the body. The male that the tail is aimed at either retreats or encounters a display of his physical aggression. "Smelly fights" can go anywhere from ten to sixty minutes.

Reproduction

Propagation season

The environment has a major impact on feline lemurs’ ability to reproduce. In the wild, the age of ripening is accelerated in exceptionally favorable years, and infant survival and birth rates are significantly higher than in dry years. Males and females do not multiply until 2.5–4 years of age, and they reach adult sizes up to three years of age in normal years.

One or two days a year, females are sexually receptive, and the estrus phase lasts anywhere from six to twenty-four hours. The breeding season in the wild lasts seven to eleven days, starting in May. Both sexes are capable of having several partners. Males approach females to examine their genitalia and make attempts at mating during these brief weeks. Males will be chased away by unresponsive females who act aggressively toward them. When a female is in estrus, she will boldly approach a male and look over her shoulder at him while facing her back.

The harsh habitat makes ring-tailed lemurs extremely fertile. During the 135–145 day gestation period, females in the wild nearly always give birth to one young. There are more twins and triplets in captivity. The average time between births for adult females is one year, with between 75 and 80% of them giving birth annually. After many years of high mortality linked to environmental stress, the population of feline lemurs is finally recovering thanks to such high rates of reproduction. For instance, infant mortality during drought years can reach 80%, compared to the typical infant mortality rate of roughly 37% within the first year of life.

• Mating system: polygamy
• Breeding interval: once a year
• Breeding season: May
• Gestational period: 19-20.5 weeks

Development of young

The peak month for births is September, and the timing of births corresponds with the end of the dry season and the start of the rainy season. Food is plentiful during these times, so some of the physical strain of nursing and weaning can be avoided.

Maki young cling ventrally to their mother during their first few days of life, but by the third day, they are able to actively move around her body. Young children start exploring their surroundings on their own at one month old, spending roughly sixteen percent of their time away from their mothers. Even so, at this age, they still fear moving more than half a meter away from their mother.

Around the sixth week of life, social play with peers starts, which includes chasing, biting, jumping, and other activities. The baby spends more time foraging and less time nursing as it gets older. At eight weeks, weaning starts.

Mothers let anyone in the group watch their baby because it’s better for everyone. While the young learn important social skills, receive extra protection from predators or other group members, and may develop relationships with adult females that will affect their future status in the group, mothers are given time to rest and can feed and travel more efficiently if another ring-tailed lemur is caring for their infant. Even babysitters gain from this. Males have social access to adult females, who may one day fill their spouse’s role; enhanced females get invaluable experience caring for infants.

Members of the group tend to an orphaned baby before it is ready to be weaned, nursing it and carrying it on their backs. Ring-tailed lemurs have also been reported to be abducted. In the role of a parent, the adult female guards the infant and collaborates with other females to keep the mother from taking it. Sometimes the baby’s kidnapper will take the child and raise it as her own, but other times she will just keep the child from being taken by the mother and let it die.

• Average number of offspring: one baby
• Average age at weaning: 5 months
• Average time to independence: 1 year

Lifespan and predation

The oldest known wild female ring-tailed lemur was approximately 20 years old. In the wild, female lemurs seldom survive past the age of 16. Because of the social structure, the life expectancy of men is even less known, although it is documented that they can live for at least 15 years. Life expectancy in captivity can occasionally reach 27 years.

Pressure from predators such as martens, fossas, civets, and various snakes can occur. Baby maquis are caught and consumed by brown lemurs. These primates’ deaths are also attributable to domestic cats that were imported to Madagascar.

One of the world’s most unusual and fascinating primates is the ring-tailed lemur. It is an amazing species to learn about and observe because of its characteristic striped tail, playful demeanor, and social nature.

In spite of its allure as an exotic, the ring-tailed lemur faces threats from predators and habitat loss in the wild. In order to safeguard these creatures and guarantee their survival in their native habitat, conservation initiatives are essential.

Ring-tailed lemurs continue to be a symbol of Madagascar’s rich biodiversity and a reminder of the value of protecting wildlife, regardless of whether one admires them for their attractive appearance or their fascinating behavior.

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