Lemurs, the furry apes brought to fame by the Disney animation film Madagascar, are the most endangered mammals on earth, a nature conference was told.
The workshop met in Madagascar to discuss the world’s 103 lemur species as conservation deteriorates amid political turmoil that has lasted three years.
“Madagascar has, by far, the highest proportion of threatened species of any primate habitat region or any one country in the world,” said primatologist Christoph Schwitzer, one of the organisers of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
“As a result, we now believe that lemurs are probably the most endangered of any group of vertebrates.”
Over 90 per cent of the world’s lemur species − found only on the Indian Ocean island − were upgraded to critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable on the IUCN’s Threatened Species list. The destruction of the primates’ tropical forest habitat and an upsurge in bush meat hunting have depleted lemur numbers since conservation efforts broke down after a coup in 2009, the organisation said in a statement.
“Following this coup, there has been a serious breakdown of protective measures, with two key protected areas in northern Madagascar, Masoala National Park and Marojejy National Park, both of them part of a Unesco complex of World Heritage Sites,” it added.
“Political uncertainty has increased poverty and accelerated illegal logging.
“Hunting of these animals has also emerged as a more serious threat than previously imagined.”
The bush meat trade also affected tortoises and other species. Madagascar’s lemurs represent 20 per cent of all primates, concentrated in an area less than one per cent of global land area where apes roam.
These include the world’s smallest primate at 30 grams – Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur – and the blue-eyed black lemur, the only ape species with blue eyes besides humans, both pf which are endangered.
Since 2000, 40 new lemur species have been discovered.
Facts about spirits of the night
• The lemur is a native of Madagascar. They are also found at Comoro Islands.
• The word lemur is Latin and means spirits of the night.
• Lemurs are a type of primate known as Prosimians.
• There are many different species of lemurs.
• The smallest species of lemur weighs about 10 grams.
• The tail is often longer than the body.
• They have opposing thumbs and have long toes. They don’t have claws either; instead they have nails.
• They don’t see very well in colour but they do have good vision overall.
• Most lemurs live all their life in trees. However, many of the larger species also live on the ground.
• The lemurs are very social and the live in family groups.
• Females have dominance over the male lemurs.
• The approximate life span of a lemur in the wild is about 18 years.
The blue-eyed black lemur – the only ape species with blue eyes besides humans.