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Eulemur albifrons is a medium sized brown lemur, weighing
approximately 2-2.6 kg (about 5-7 pounds), with an overall body
length of 89-96 cm. They are very noticeably sexually
dichromatic, with the head of the male being completely white,
while the females are brown and gray. Both have a dark
gray to black face (Garbutt 1999; Mittermeier et al. 2006).
This species occurs in moist tropical and montane rainforests
in north-eastern Madagascar, from the Bemarivo River north of
Sambava, throughout the Masoala Peninsula, and south to Mananara-Nord
(Garbutt 1999; Mittermeier et al. 2006). The southern
distribution of the white-fronted brown lemur is unclear, as
there has been a significant amount of hybridization with E.
fulvus (Mittermeier et al. 2006).
Eulemur albifrons is a cathemeral species (Rasmussen 1999,
cited in Mittermeier et al. 2006) found in small, cohesive
multi-male, multi-female groups, and the females give birth to
offspring from mid-October to early December (Vasey 1997, cited
in Vasey 2004). They are frugivorous lemurs, though during
the dry season their diet is supplemented by flowers, more so by
females (Vasey 1997). On the Masoala Peninsula, population
density has been estimated at approximately 15 individuals / km²
(Rakotondratsima and Kremen 2001, cited in Mittermeier et al.
2006).
Recent studies have shown that this is the most heavily
hunted lemur species, and that at the current rate, these
populations are not sustainable (Golden 2005, cited in
Mittermeier et al. 2006). Habitat loss due to
slash-and-burn agriculture and logging, as well as quartz mining
are also contributing to the demise of this lemur, and IUCN has
recently assessed E. albifrons as Vulnerable (VU A4cd) (Mittermeier
et al. 2006).
The reserve currently houses two males of this species, and
like our other lemurs, they are fed a mixture of fruit and
vegetables along with primate biscuits. Unfortunately,
white-fronted lemurs have become increasingly rare in the
zoological community, and as such, breeding females are not
available.
Works Cited:
Freed BZ. 1996. Co-occurrence among crowned lemurs (Lemur
coronatus) and Sanford’s lemurs (Lemur fulvus sanfordi) of
Madagascar [PhD. Dissertation]. Saint Louis: Washington
University. 420 p.
Garbutt N. 1999. Mammals of Madagascar. New Haven and London:
Yale University Press. 320 p.
Golden C. 2005. Eaten to endangerment: Mammal hunting and the
bushmeat trade in Madagascar’s Makira Forest. [Undergraduate
thesis]. Harvard University.
Traber S, Müller A. 2006. A note on the activity cycle of
captive white-fronted lemurs (Eulemur fulvus albifrons). Folia
Primatologica 77(1-2):139-142.
Mittermeier R, Konstant W, Hawkins F, Louis E, Langrand O,
Ratsimbazafy J, Rasoloarison R, Ganzhorn J, Rajaobelina S,
Tattersall I, Meyers D. 2006. Lemurs of Madagascar. Washington
D.C.: Conservation International. 520 p.
Mizuta T. 2002. Predation by Eulemur fulvus fulvus on a
nestling of Terpsiphone mutate (Aves: Monarchidae) in dry forest
in north-western Madagascar. Folia Primatologica 73:217-219.
Nakamura M. 2004. Predation by Eulemur fulvus fulvus on eggs
of Ploceus sakalava sakalava (Aves: Ploceidae) in
Ankarafantsika, Madagascar. Folia Primatologica 75:376-378.
Rakotondratsima M, Kremen C. 2001. Suivi écologique de deux
espèces de lémuriens diurnes Varecia variegate rubra et Eulemur
fulvus albifrons dans la presqu’île de Masoala (1993-1998).
Lemur News 6:31-35.
Rasmussen M. 1999. Ecological influences on the activity
cycle in two cathemeral primates: The mongoose lemur (Eulemur
mongoz) and the common brown lemur (Eulemur fulvus fulvus).
[PhD. Dissertation]. Durham: Duke University.
Vasey N. 1997. Community ecology and behavior of Varecia
variegate rubra and Lemur fulvus albifrons on the Masoala
Peninsula, Madagascar. [PhD. Dissertation]. Saint Louis:
Washington University.
Vasey N. 2004. Circadian rhythms in diet and habitat use in
red ruffed lemurs (Varecia rubra) and white-fronted brown lemurs
(Eulemur fulvus albifrons). American Journal of Physical
Anthropology 124:353-363.
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