Red ruffed lemur Varecia rubra
A sunbathing prosimian.
All about the red ruffed lemur and its unique role in the rainforest.
The red ruffed lemur in a nutshell
- eats
- fruit, nectar and leaves
- inhabits
- Madagascar
- excels at
- calling loudly
The red ruffed lemur is found in the rainforests of the Masoala Peninsula in Madagascar. It lives high up in the trees, and feeds on fruits, nectar and leaves. It can also often be found sunning itself on its back, with arms and legs outspread.
Barking lemurs seldom bite
Red ruffed lemurs live in small, close-knit groups, often led by females. They communicate by means of loud calls that echo through the dense rainforest, alerting or locating each other while foraging. The red ruffed lemur also utters calls to let other groups know that the territory is already occupied.
Submissive males
Female lemurs are fertile about one day a year, so the male stays alert to when this might be. He then offers himself by assuming a submissive posture and uttering squeaking calls. When a fertile female is nearby, the male spreads scent signals and smells and licks her genitals. The male and female rub up against each other, squeaking to each other as they do so.
Females usually give birth to one or two young per litter. Lemurs are the only primates to build nests in the trees for their infants, which stay in the nest for the first few weeks until they are able to climb and move about among the branches.
Monkeys or not?
Like the grey mouse lemur and the ring-tailed lemur, the red ruffed lemur belongs among the prosimians. These are not apes, but belong to the same order – the primates – but in a separate ‘suborder’, the Strepsirrhini. There used to be many more prosimians around the world, but these were outcompeted by the apes. Because there are no monkeys in Madagascar, the prosimians were able to evolve there undisturbed. In areas inhabited by both monkeys and prosimians, the prosimians are almost completely nocturnal, and the monkeys are truly diurnal.
Protection from extinction
The red ruffed lemur is critically endangered by hunting and by loss of habitat due to slash-and-burn agriculture. Thankfully, efforts are being made worldwide to protect this species. Nature reserves in Madagascar and species conservation programmes in zoos such as ARTIS are working hard to ensure the survival of the red ruffed lemur.
Pollinators
Most people thinking of pollinators imagine bees or birds. However, in searching for nectar and fruit, red ruffed lemurs also play an important role in pollinating the flowers in their habitat.
