Ring-tailed Lemur
(Lemur catta)
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Photo
courtesy of Duke Primate Center
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General Info: Ring-tailed
lemurs are diurnal animals (Nakamichi 2000). The life expectancy
for a lemur is 20 years (Jolly 1966).
Habitat: Ring-tailed lemurs are only found
in Madagascar.
They can be seen in several different reserves such as Berenty,
Beza-Mahafaly, and Ranomafana National Park in Madagascar. They
live in open, arid and forested habitats. Fifteen to twenty percent
of their time is spent on the ground (Jolly 1966).
Food: Ring-tailed lemurs are considered
browsers; they eat the fruit of the prickly pear cactus and the
leaves of 24 different plant species. Feeding occurs at any time
between 5:30-8:30 am and between 3:00-5:00 pm. They never eat
insects in the wild, but in zoos they will eat anything, including
chocolate ice cream (Jolly 1966).
Predators: The main predators are aerial,
such as hawks. Lemurs are not instinctively afraid of snakes since
there are no native poisonous snakes in Madagascar. The boa constrictor
is the only snake that may be considered a minor threat to ring-tailed
lemurs. Humans and dogs may be considered bothersome. (Jolly 1996).
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Defense: A low-flying hawk will
cause a high pitched alarm call to be given by any member of the troop
(Jolly 1966). As a result the lemurs will drop in the canopy and/or
leave the area (Karpanty and Grella 2001). If a ground predator is spotted,
a different call will be given. A ring-tailed lemur will stare and wave
its tail at a ground predator. If the predator does not leave, the lemur
will make several clicks or grunts. If the threat from the ground predator
continues, the lemur that spotted the ground predator will give a loud
bark that will arouse the entire group to bark at the predator (Jolly
1966).
