Each year, World Lemur Day is held on the last Friday of October. The World Lemur Festival is celebrated around the world in October and November, during the weeks surrounding this date. This year’s World Lemur Day is October 30.
Join LCF for our third World Lemur Festival! This year, we’re taking it virtual with exciting events that can be celebrated around the globe. Check out our schedule of activities below.
Special Thanks
As a member, we thank the Lemur Conservation Network for promoting our event and those hosted around the world by fellow LCN members—conservation organizations, research groups, zoos, partners, and sponsors—that support lemur conservation in Madagascar. Many of this year’s World Lemur Festival events will be held virtually due to COVID-19. But some events are still being held in Madagascar and other locations.
We’re very grateful to artist Nathan Ferlazzo for lending his beautiful ring-tailed lemur artwork to our World Lemur Festival promotional materials. He is the founder of Marini Ferlazzo, a family business based in Melbourne, Australia that works alongside nonprofits to support wildlife conservation around the world. Proceeds from the sale of each lemur print benefits the Lemur Conservation Foundation.
2020 World Lemur Festival Juried Art Exhibition
LCF received over 100 submissions for our annual World Lemur Festival Juried Art Exhibition. We encouraged artists around the globe to submit artwork depicting lemurs as a way to build awareness about and inspire action to protect Madagascar’s endangered primates. The outpouring of talent for lemur conservation was clear as our judges struggled to pick just two winners.
View the winning pieces and browse through the entire Juried Art Exhibition.
Visit Facebook and click LIKE on the entry of your choice to let us know which was your favorite.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Monday, October 19: The Role of Art in Conservation
Digital Juried Art Exhibition
Look through our digital exhibition of original lemur-themed artwork from around the world. These selected pieces help build awareness about Madagascar’s endangered primates and inspire us to work together to protect them and their habitat.
Click here to view all the wonderful submissions in our virtual art exhibition, and visit Facebook to vote for your personal favorite.
Juried Art Exhibition Winner Announcement | 12:00 PM EST
Join us as we formally announce the top two winning artists of the Lemur Conservation Foundation’s 3rd Annual World Lemur Festival Juried Art Exhibition. First place winner received $1,000 and has been named “Lemur Conservation Foundation Artist of the Year.” The runner up received $500. Both pieces will be celebrated and accessioned into LCF’s art collection.
Conservation Conversations: All About Art | 2:00 PM EST
Join us virtually in the Mianatra Center for Lemur Studies as LCF’s founder and artist Penelope Bodry-Sanders details how the Lemur Conservation Foundation builds awareness about and inspires action to protect endangered lemurs and their habitat through art. Free to register, but space is limited.
Watch it again! We recorded this talk – now with even more footage of the art at LCF. Free to view here:
Tuesday, October 20: Prosimian Puzzles
Digital Escape Room
This engaging activity can be completed in the comfort of your own home. Try it solo or grab some friends and family for this series of challenging puzzles. Our virtual escape room will transform you into a prosimian pro in no time! You’re welcomed to try as many times as it takes to win the secret World Lemur Festival prize.* You’ll probably want to have a pen and paper handy in order to solve all the perplexing puzzles.
Try our World Lemur Festival Escape Room!
*Prizes only available during World Lemur Festival (10/19/2020 – 10/23/2020)
Wednesday, October 21: Art in Action
Art Tutorial and Free Raffle
Watch this incredible time-lapse video by artist Jennifer Whitlock as she creates a collection of lemur pieces to inspire a love of Madagascar’s primates. Mrs. Whitlock has graciously agreed to partner with the Lemur Conservation Foundation to create and donate this original lemur set to celebrate and raise awareness for LCF’s lemur conservation efforts. Visit our social media platforms to view the video, then LIKE and COMMENT for a chance to win.
ENTER RAFFLE: Like and comment on the video posted to our Facebook for a chance to win. One winner will be selected on Friday, October 23 at 12:00 PM EST and be notified by direct message.
Print-at-Home Lemur Coloring Book
Download our free lemur coloring book. With designs by artists Caitlyn Cooper and Kathy Barbro, this print-at-home activity is perfect for kids. Each page includes fun facts about the variety of lemur species LCF helps to protect both at our reserve in Myakka City, FL and halfway around the world in Madagascar.
View and download LCF’s Lemur Coloring Book.
Check out all our Kid’s Activities including mazes, lemur crafts, and more!
Thursday, October 22: Prosimian Professionals
Conservation Conversations: Talk with the Experts | 2:00 PM EST
Join us live at the Lemur Conservation Foundation’s reserve in Myakka City, FL for an in-depth conversation with our lemur experts and animal care professionals. This talk is perfect for students interested in conservation careers, LCF supporters, and lemur enthusiasts. Our panel of experts are eager to explain the importance of their work and answer questions. Free to register, but space is limited.
Our panel:
- Dr. Erik Patel – LCF Conservation and Research Director
- Caitlin Kenney – LCF Curator of Primates
- Lauren Arshakuni – LCF Senior Primate Keeper
Watch it again! We recorded this talk, and you can view it here:
Support the Professionals
LCF will be hosting our first ever lemur trivia night on Friday, October 23 for teams of animal care professionals in zoos around the country. Teams may raise funds for lemur conservation to receive advantages before and during the game. All funds raised will help preserve and conserve the primates of Madagascar through managed breeding, scientific research, education, and art. Your donation will help teams achieve their fundraising goals and unlock pre-game clues for categories so players can brush up on topics before game night.
Select a team to support and donate here: www.bit.ly/lemurtrivia2020
Team 1: Smithsonian National Zoo – primate unit
Team 2: Denver Zoo
Team 3: Riverbanks Zoo AAZK Chapter
Team 4: Lincoln Children’s Zoo
Team 5: Endangered Primate Foundation’s Prosimian Sanctuary, Jacksonville Zoo
Team 6: Albuquerque BioPark
Team 7: Bramble Park Zoo
Team 8: Blank Park Zoo
Team 9: John Ball Zoo
Friday, October 23: Celebrate and Support
Art Raffle Winner Announcement | 12:00 PM EST
One lucky winner will receive a collection of lemur-themed coasters painted by artist Jennifer Whitlock. Raffle is free to enter, but you must LIKE and COMMENT on our Facebook post to be eligible to win. Winner will be selected randomly, and notified via private message.
Community Favorite Announcement | 5:00 PM EST
All community likes and reactions on LCF’s Facebook album are tallied, and one artist with the most votes will be honored with the “Community Favorite Award” for their lemur-themed artwork. Grand prize winners and honorable mentions selected by LCF’s panel of judges are not eligible to win the “Community Favorite Award.” Winner will be announced at 5:00 PM EST.
Virtual Lemur Trivia Night | 7:00 PM EST
Teams of animal care professionals in zoos throughout the country will compete for ultimate prosimian bragging rights during this friendly competition. While not open to the general public, you can still show your dedication to the survival of lemurs by selecting a team to support and making a donation here: www.bit.ly/lemurtrivia2020.
Stay tuned for the winning team announcement.
Friday, October 30: World Lemur Day
Celebrate this special day by taking action to build awareness and help protect endangered lemurs.
Ask friends and family to share your compassion for endangered lemurs.
Tell them about the need for LCF’s work to protect lemurs – they may be surprised to learn that 95% of lemur species are threatened with extinction. Share a link to our website or a post from social media.
Support LCF's mission to protect lemurs from extinction.
Support LCF’s managed breeding, scientific research, conservation education, and art programs that are helping to save these primates. Donate today.
Use social media responsibly.
Avoid posting or sharing the following content on social media. Research shows these types of images and media send the wrong message to viewers concerning chimps and other non-human primates like lemurs. Seeing this type of content causes people to assume that the primates are not endangered or threatened in the wild (despite 95% of lemurs being threatened with extinction). This type of imagery also causes people to mistakenly assume that primates make good pets even though primates never make appropriate pets.
- Imagery showing primates as pets
- People directly interacting with primates (petting, touching, holding, for example)
- Primates wearing human clothes, hats, diapers, leashes or other accessories
Don't pay to take photos with pet lemurs.
Some people and/or businesses will charge tourists for the opportunity to interact with pet lemurs and take photos with them. Avoid supporting hotels, restaurants, or roadside attractions that have pet lemurs. Photos like these mislead people into thinking that lemurs make appropriate pets.
If you see something, say something.
United States – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the agency in charge of implementing wildlife regulations in the U.S. We suggest contacting them as a resource for directing you to the most appropriate authority: email fws_tips@fws.gov or call 1-844-FWS-TIPS (397-8477).
Madagascar – If you have seen a pet lemur in Madagascar, submit a short, anonymous report to the Survey of Pet Lemurs in Madagascar. This research initiative was started to raise awareness regarding the illegal ownership of lemurs in Madagascar.