What’s a lemur?

Lemurs are prosimians, a type of primate. Like other primates (including humans) they have eyes that face forward, flexible fingers and toes, color vision, opposable thumbs (that help them hold on and grip things), and more complicated brains than other animals.

There are over 60 species and subspecies of lemurs, but they only live in the wild in Madagascar and the Comoros Islands. All species are on the endangered species list.

Habitat loss is the main threat to lemurs today, as people clear their native forests for farmland. Lemurs play an important role in the ecology of Madagascar and the Comoros Islands because they disperse seeds from the fruit they eat. These seeds can then grow into new plants, which is important because the forests of Madagascar are being destroyed at a high rate.

Habitat and Range

There are many lemur species adapted to different habitats, from tropical rainforests to dry deserts. However, all lemur species live in just two places: Madagascar and the Comoro islands off the east coast of Africa.

Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world. It is almost 1,000 miles long and 360 miles wide at its widest point. The tops of its mountains are almost 2 miles above the ocean. It is thought that Madagascar used to be part of Africa, but broke off and floated away many years ago to its current location 220 miles off the coast.

Fossils suggest that lemurs used to live in Africa, Europe, and North America. While other lemurs in the world eventually died out, the lemurs in Madagascar had few natural predators and plenty of food. They thrived on the island and developed into over 40 different species. But when humans came to Madagascar 2000 years ago, they hunted lemurs for food and cut down their forests for farmland and timber. Now only half the species of lemurs are left on Madagascar and all of them are considered endangered. Special parks have been started on the island where it is illegal to kill lemurs or to cut down the forest. But in an effort to feed their growing population, people in Madagascar are still clearing other land for farming. Unless a balance can be reached, the forests will soon be gone on Madagascar and many lemurs will die out with them.

Diet

Most lemurs are herbivores, but some eat insects or other small animals.

Adaptations

Lemurs’ bottom teeth form what is called a “tooth comb” because they use it to groom themselves and other lemurs. Lemurs have a great sense of smell. They have wet noses and scent glands they use for scent marking.

Photos courtesy of David Haring, Duke Lemur Center