How do lemurs interact with humans

This threatens wild populations and the survival of entire species. Importing primates for the pet trade has been banned in the U. Typical home environments can be deadly to pet primates. Household hazards include burns caused by stoves, irons, lightbulbs, and poisoning from eating cleaning products or ornamental plants. This is because we are a managed breeding facility and scientific studies take place at the reserve.

Released or escaped pet primates can cause havoc to habitats where they are not native and can destroy delicate ecosystems. Released or escaped primates—including rhesus macaques and vervets —have established populations in the U.

Additionally, rhesus macaques in Florida have tested positive for herpes B, a deadly virus that can spread via bites and scratches. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission , at least 18 incidents of rhesus macaque bites and scratches have been reported in Florida.

LCF is not a sanctuary and we are not able to shelter or care for these lemurs for the following reasons:. Lemur SSPs include goals and recommendations to create maximum genetic diversity, resulting in the long-term health of lemur populations.

Pedigree data, which is rarely available for pet primates, is essential to a successful SSP. It is often difficult to integrate pet lemurs into stable social groups. Pet lemurs do not always display normal social behavior which is a result from abnormal rearing and lack of socialization. Housing ex-pets at LCF would reduce available space and staff resources that would otherwise be dedicated to properly socialized groups of lemurs supporting Species Survival Plans. Pet lemurs are often extremely aggressive toward humans.

These animals pose a considerable threat to caregiver safety due to an increased risk of grabbing, biting, and scratching. LCF promotes naturalistic behavior by housing our lemurs in large forest habitats. Unfortunately, we would not be able to provide this type of enriching environment for lemurs that are aggressive toward people.

The preferred option for relinquished pet lemurs is placement in a true sanctuary. LCF is not a sanctuary, but there are accredited or reputable sanctuaries that provide life-long care to confiscated and surrendered pet primates.

The North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance has guidance on how to determine if a sanctuary is a true or pseudo sanctuary. Providing funds for care and housing may accelerate placement as most reputable primate sanctuaries are running at full capacity.

Another characteristic, unique to the ring-tailed lemurs, is their use of scents. They have apocrine and sebaceous sweat glands in their genital regions. Males have special glands on their wrists and shoulders. The lemurs use the greasy, scented substance created in these glands to mark their territory.

Males also participate in a special rival act of "stink fighting". They put get the secretions on their tails and wave their scented tail at other rival males to establish dominance. When two groups of lemurs encounter each other, the dominant females will stare, glare, or even fight and bite each other. Dominant female combat can be serious or even fatal. After inter-group encounters, the groups typically separate and retreat to their home ranges.

Interactions with Other Species. Ring-tailed lemurs have little competition with other sympathetic species for food because ring-tailed lemurs forage during the day, unlike their nocturnal counterparts. The different daily activity patterns separate the species. Competition commonly occurs during breeding season when lemurs are looking for mates. History Magazine These 3,year-old giants watched over the cemeteries of Sardinia. Magazine How one image captures 21 hours of a volcanic eruption.

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Travel My Hometown In L. Travel The last artists crafting a Thai royal treasure. Subscriber Exclusive Content. Why are people so dang obsessed with Mars? How viruses shape our world. The era of greyhound racing in the U. After mating, female lemurs have a gestation period of to days, depending on the species.

A female can give birth to between one and six young at a time. Smaller species of lemurs tend to give birth to more babies, according to the San Diego Zoo. Baby lemurs, called pups, generally cling to their mother's belly for the first three to four weeks of life and then ride on her back until they are 3 to 4 months old.

Lemurs can take between one and three-and -a-half years to reach adulthood, depending on the species. The lifespan of lemurs depends on the species as well. According to ADW, gray mouse lemurs Microcebus murinus live an average of 14 years in captivity; ring-tailed lemurs usually live 16 years in the wild but may reach 33 years old in captivity; and black-and-white ruffed lemurs Varecia variegata can live for more than 35 years in captivity.

Lemurs are occasionally kept as pets in the U. Lemurs naturally live in complex social groups and are not suited to living with humans in a domestic setting. Pet lemurs also have a strong, unpleasant odor, and often become aggressive when they reach sexual maturity. A study published in the journal PLOS One estimated that more than 30, wild-caught lemurs were being kept as pets in Madagascar. The study noted that one-third of attempts to keep pet lemurs resulted in the death of the lemur and once they are kept as pets, it's almost impossible to return them to the wild.

The motivation for capturing wild lemurs often comes from the tourism industry. The main reasons lemur populations have declined so significantly is because of habitat loss due to deforestation and hunting in Madagascar.

Their habitat is often destroyed so that it can be used for agriculture, and they are hunted for food. Related: More than half of all primates threatened with extinction. Critically endangered lemur species include indris, black-and-white ruffed lemurs, Sibree's dwarf lemurs, blue-eyed black lemurs and mongoose lemurs. Gray mouse lemurs and gray-brown mouse lemurs Microcebus griseorufus are the only lemur species that are currently not threatened with extinction and are placed in the lowest-risk category.

However, the IUCN notes that even these species are likely in decline and may be moved into the threatened category in the future.

Finally, Groves' dwarf lemurs Cheirogaleus grovesi and Nosy Boraha mouse lemurs Microcebus boraha are listed as data deficient, which means there isn't enough information about their populations for the IUCN to make an assessment. This article was originally written by Live Science contributor Alina Bradford and has since been updated. Patrick is a staff writer for Live Science.