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|  Prosimians | Old World Monkeys | New World Monkeys | Lesser Apes | Great Apes Prosimians Prosimians, or stepsirhines, occur only in the tropics of Africa, Asia, and Madagascar. They are the oldest living primates having evolved some 65 million years ago. As the name implies, modern day prosimians (which means "before monkeys"), retain a large number of characteristics which were common to ancestral primates and not to monkeys and apes. The skull has large orbits, a reduced brain case, an elongated snout and more highly developed olfactory and auditory regions. With the exception of the tarsier, all have a dental tooth comb (used in grooming and gnawing), a "toilet" claw on the second toe of their feet (also used in grooming), a postorbital bar, a well developed moist nose, and a tapetum lucidum in the eye (a reflective layer that aids in nocturnal vision). Once considered a true prosimian, the tarsiers of Asia are now considered to be of a separate radiation from that leading to the loriforms and lemurs. Although nocturnal, like most prosimians, tarsiers share several traits with anthropoids (monkeys and apes), such as a dry nose, and lack of a tapetum lucidum. Most prosimians are active at night and are well adapted to a nocturnal niche. Large eyes, independently moveable ears, tactile hairs and whiskers, and a well developed sense of smell, help these primates communicate and find food. Having evolved in isolation for millions of years, some Malagasy lemurs are diurnal and some are cathemeral (active during both night and day); This has given rise to complex and varied social systems, diet, size, reproduction and habitat type. Territories are usually marked by urine washing or through odiferous secretions produced from scent glands. Depending on the species, these glands are found on the top of the head, in the wrists, or on the front of the throat. The lorifoms are widely dispersed through Asia and Africa. Some species, such as the Senegal galagos are not in danger of extinction. Others, such as the pottos and lorises are slow moving and have small home ranges, allowing for easy capture. These creatures rely on tropical forest habitats which are continuing to be destroyed by timber and mining. The lemurs of Madagascar are now considered to be a conservation priority. These primates are endemic (occurring nowhere else in the world) to the region, and much of their habitat has already been lost, pushing them into smaller and smaller forest fragments. It is estimated that 80% of Madagascar's original forest has been converted for hardwood extraction, agriculture and mining. Virtually all lemurs are under threat from man-made activities. It is imperative the more and more protected areas be established on this small island in order to save these ancient primates. Listed below is taxonomic information on the different prosimian species:Lorifoms Lorises and pottos Genus: Loris, Nycticebus, Arctocebus, Perodicticus Taxonomy: 9 species, 6 subspecies Distribution: Lorises: India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Burma, Cambodia, India, Lao PDR, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, China Pottos: Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, DRC, Equitorial Guinea, Gabon, Nigeria, Benin, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, Angola, Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia Size: Head and body length: 170-390mm Weight: 102-1600g Appearance: Short tails, small external ears, equal length fore and hind limbs, round head and eyes, large eyes, short fur, well camouflaged, coat color varies from population to population, head, eyes, and ears typically rounded with the ears sometimes being hidden within the surrounding hair, special channels in the blood vessels of their hands and feet give their griping muscles powerful strength Habitat: Primary forest, secondary forest, natural clearings, tropical rain forest, dry semideciduous forest, scrub forest, swamp, montane forest, plantations, wooded savanna Diet: Fruit, gums, insects, small vertebrates, shoots, leaves, flowers, eggs Locomotion: Quadrupedal slow climbing and walking Behavior: Solitary foraging, nocturnal, arboreal, vocalize, scent mark, some are territorialGalagos Genus: Otolemur, Euoticus, Galago Taxonomy: 18 species, 10 subspecies Distribution: Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Mozambique, Angola, Rwanda, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Bioko, Nigeria, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Sudan, The Gambia, Togo, Somalia, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, Somalia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Burundi, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Liberia Size: Head and body length: 105-465mm, Weight: 200-1465g Appearance: Large eyes, large ears, long bushy tails, slender bodies, larger hind limbs than fore limbs, color of coat varies between species, some have eye rings Habitat: Primary and secondary rain forest, riverine forest, swamp, moist lowland forest, montane forest, Acacia woodland, thorn scrub, savanna, gallery forest, highland forest, evergreen forest, coastal dry forest, bamboo, plantations Diet: Fruit, animal prey, insects, gums, leaves, buds, seeds Locomotion: Leaping, quadrupedal running, climbing, vertical clinging, bipedal hopping, jumping Behavior: Nocturnal, arboreal, solitary foraging and cohesive group foraging, some have complex social networks, scent mark, urine wash, vocalizeTarsiers Tarsiers Genus: Tarsius Taxonomy: 7 species, 5 subspecies Distribution: Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, Philippines Size: Head and body length: 85-160mm Weight: 100-142g Appearance: Long partly hairless tail, elongated tarsal bones, extremely large eyes, coat color varies between species, hairs are wavy and silky, round head, reduced muzzle, short neck, short forelimbs and extremely long hind limbs Habitat: Secondary growth forest, primary forest, montane forest, cloud forest, thorn scrub, coastal forest, mangrove, lowland forest Diet: Insects, small animal prey Locomotion: Vertical clinging and leaping, climbing, walking, hopping, quadrupedal Behavior: Nocturnal, arboreal, some use hollows in ground to hide, scent mark, vocalize, variable social structureLemurs Dwarf Lemurs, Mouse Lemurs and Fork Marked Lemurs Genus: Microcebus, Allocebus, Mirza, Cheirogaleus, Phaner Taxonomy: 21 species, 0 subspecies Distribution: Madagascar Size: Head and body length: 125-275mm Weight: 30-470g Appearance: Small (Microcebus myoxinus is the smallest living primate), fur short and dense, coat color varies between species, elongated bodies, short arms and legs, moist muzzle, little fur on ears, large eyes Habitat: Primary lowland rainforest, moist seasonal forest, non-deciduous dry forest, secondary forest, spiny desert, gallery forest, deciduous dry forest Diet: Fruit, animal prey, insects, flowers, buds, gums, exudates, leaves Locomotion: Quadrupedal running, leaping and climbing Behavior: Nocturnal, Variable diverse social structure, arboreal, vocalize, scent mark, some are territorial, build nests, Microcebus, Allocebus and Cheirogaleus are unique among primates in that they hibernate, mouse lemurs use dialects to communicateSportive Lemurs Genus: Lepilemur Taxonomy: 7 species, 1 subspecies Distribution: Madagascar Size: Head and body length: 300-350mm Weight: 500-900g Appearance: Medium-sized, coat is dense and short, color various shades of brown and grey, prominent moist muzzle, big eyes, medium-sized ears, thin tail Habitat: Gallery forest, bush, humid forest, deciduous dry forest, spiny desert, riverine, secondary forest, bamboo Diet: Leaves, fruit, flowers, seeds, bark Locomotion: Vertical clinging and leaping Behavior: Nocturnal, arboreal, very territorial, well-defined small home ranges, males guard territories and use vocalizations, chases, visual displays, and fighting to defend their areas, sleep in hollow trees, typically solitaryTrue Lemurs Genus: Hapalemur, Prolemur, Lemur, Eulemur, Varecia Taxonomy: 18 species, 4 subspecies Distribution: Madagascar Size: Head and body length: 280-458mm Weight: 0.7-4.5kg Appearance: Slender, thick wooly fur, fox-like faces, hairy ears, males and females are same size, medium cat-sized, long bushy tails, coat color varies among species Habitat: Scrub, spiny desert, dry forest, gallery forest, semideciducous dry tropical forest, savanna, humid forest, primary forest, timber, cashew and coffee plantations, evergreen forest, bamboo Diet: bamboo, stems, leaves, fruit, seeds, leaves, nectar, animal prey, mushrooms, sap, insects Locomotion: Quadrupedal, terrestrial running, vertical clinging and leaping Behavior: Variable social structure: ring-tailed lemur exhibits a social system unique to mammals in that all adult females completely dominate all males in their group, some species are diurnal, some arboreal and some cathemeral (activity is spread throughout both day and night), very vocal, scent mark, groomAvahi, Sifakas and Indri Genus: Avahi, Propithecus, Indri Taxonomy: 11 species, 3 subspecies Distribution: Madagascar Size: Head and body length: 25-70cm Weight: 0.7-8kg Appearance: Short bare snouts, small to large sized, powerful long legs, webbed toes, enlarged salivary glands, large stomachs, varied color among species, short dense fur, Indri does not have a tail Habitat: Seasonal dry forest, rain forest, deciduous dry forest, gallery forest, evergreen forest, spiny desert, humid montane forest Diet: Leaves, fruit, seeds, buds, flowers, bark Locomotion: Vertical clinging and leaping, some suspensory Behavior: Both diurnal and nocturnal species, striking vocalizations, variable social structureAye-Aye Genus: Daubentonia Taxonomy: 1 species, 0 subspecies Size: Head and body length: 360-440mm Weight: 2-3kg Appearance: Coarse black-brown hair with white highlights, inconsistent patches of fur, long bushy tail, pale face, dark eye rings, pointed nose, large black hairless ears, massive round head, sharp continuously growing incisors, elongated middle fingers, curved nails Habitat: Primary forest, secondary forest, spiny desert, rain forest, dry forest, tree plantations Diet: Fruit, insects, fungus, animal prey, nectar Locomotion: Quadrupedal, climbing, leaping Behavior: Nocturnal, arboreal, use middle finger to probe into bark to catch insects, solitary, urine and scent mark, loud vocalizations, make nest for sleeping, males have larger home ranges than females Back to Primate Groupings | ||||||||||||||
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