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Adult mongoose lemurs are small, weighing between 1.1 and 1.6
kg (approximately 3 lbs). The species is sexually
dichromatic, meaning that males and females have differently
colored pelage. Males have a gray-brown coat, with rufous
brown pelage on the neck and shoulders. Most distinctive
is the rufous brown cheeks and beard. The females have
gray coats that are lighter than that of the males while their
faces are a darker gray than that of the males. The white
cheeks and beard of the females is in stark contrast with the
rufous brown markings of the males (Mittermeier et al, 2006).
Mongoose lemurs live in small family units centered on a
male-female pair with one to four offspring (Curtis and Zaramody,
1999).
Mongoose lemurs are neither diurnal (active during the day)
nor nocturnal (active during the night); instead, they follow an
activity pattern termed cathemeral. This unusual behavior
was first described by Ian Tattersall from his research with
Mayotte lemurs, Eulemur fulvus mayottensis (Tattersall, 1976a).
It is distinguished by travel, feeding, and social interactions
taking place throughout the day and night, with activity levels
varying by available light and season. At the reserve, the
mongoose lemurs are active throughout the day, but night
observations have not yet been conducted. It will be
interesting to see whether or not captive mongoose lemurs
maintain the cathemeral behavior of their wild counterparts.
In the wild, mongoose lemurs eat fruit, flowers, nectar, and
occasionally beetles and grubs, and may be important pollinators
(Garbut, 1999). At the reserve they eat a mixture of
fruit, vegetables, and manufactured primate biscuits.
However, flowers, leaves, and mealworms are provided for
enrichment. On multiple occasions, mongoose lemurs at the
reserve have caught and eaten small birds unwise enough to enter
the enclosures adjoined to the lemur shelter.
One of only two lemur species found outside of Madagascar,
mongoose lemurs can be found in the Comoros islands of Moheli
and Anjouan as well as in northwestern Madagascar (Petter et
al., 1977; Tattersall, 1982). Their natural habitat is
tropical dry deciduous forest but they can also survive well in
secondary forest (Petter, 1962; Tattersall, 1976a). At the
reserve, the mongoose lemurs avoid the tall slash pines and
instead move extensively through the live and laurel oaks and
the secondary canopy of wax myrtle and gall berry.
In Madagascar, mongoose lemurs breed in May and June and give
birth in October and November (Duke University, 2000). In
Florida, however, they breed between November and February,
giving birth in April or May after a 125 day gestation period.
The female usually gives birth to a single offspring each year
but will have offspring in consecutive years.
The latest IUCN Red List assessment categorizes mongoose
lemurs as Endangered (EN A2cd). The greatest threats to
this species are habitat destruction and hunting.
Slash-and-burn agriculture, clearing land for cattle, and
charcoal production all result in reduced habitat for the
mongoose lemurs. Increasingly, mongoose lemurs are being
regarded as crop pests by farmers on Ajouan and Moheli
(Mittermeier et al 2006). The captive mongoose lemurs
housed at the reserve participate in the AZA’s cooperative
breeding program to help safeguard the species against
extinction.
Works Cited
Curtis, D.J. and Zaramody, A. 1999. Social
structure and seasonal variation in the behavior of Eulemur
mongoz. Folia Primatologica 70: 79-96
Duke University. 2000. Courtesy of Dr. Elwyn Simons.
Garbutt, N. 1999. Mammals of Madagascar. Yale
University Press, New Haven.
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.
Peter, J.-J. 1962. Recherches sur l’écologie et
l’éthologique des lémuriens malgashes. Mémoires Museum
National de Nistoire Naturelle, Paris (A) 27: 1-146.
Peter, J.-J., Albignac, R., and Rumpler, Y. 1977.
Mammifères Lémuriens (Primates Prosimiens). Vol. 44 of
Faune de Madagascar. ORSTOM/CNRS, Paris.
Tattersall, I. 1976a. Group structure and
activity rhythm in Lemur mongoz (Primates, Lemuriformes) on
Anjouan and Mohéli Islands, Comoro Archipelago.
Anthropological Papers of the American Museum of Natural History
53(2): 257-261.
Tattersall, I. 1982. The Primates of Madagascar.
Columbia University Press, New York.
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