Black-and-White Ruffed Lemur
Varecia variegata

 

 All about Black and White Ruffed Lemurs

Lemurs are closely related to other primates such as monkeys and apes and are only found in Madagascar. The Ruffed Lemurs (black and white, and red) are similar in size and behavior. Like the other Ruffed Lemurs, the Black and White Ruffed Lemurs are medium in size but have a fascinating color distribution. Their underbellies, shoulder, neck, face, tails, and the inner side of their hands and legs are black while the rest of their bodies and the crown of their heads are white. Like the Red Ruffed Lemurs, their tails are usually 2 feet long and are longer than their bodies. They have long bodies and legs and slender snouts. Males and females are monomorphic and are both around 6 to 8 pounds. Lemurs are arboreal creatures, and are active during the day (diurnal), spending most of their time living and resting in trees. Their body colors help camouflage them from predators.

 

Diet/ Habitat/ Range

Black and White Ruffed Lemurs are endemic to Madagascar. They live in the thickly vegetated tropical rainforests of Eastern Madagascar. These lemurs occupy a greater distributional range than the Red Ruffed lemurs stretching from the Masoala Peninsula through the Andasibe-Mantadia National Park all the way to the south of the Mananara River.

 

Ruffed Lemurs (both black and white, and red) feed on fruits, insects, flowers, seeds, nectar, and pollen. A considerable proportion (75% or more) of their diet is filled with fruits (frugivorous). Nectar is a very popular seasonal food resource that Ruffed Lemurs feast on. Since pollen that is rubbed onto their fur is carried to other flowers, these lemurs are also categorized as pollinators.

 

Behavior

Ruffed Lemurs are highly social and live in large family groups (15 or more lemurs) in the wild consisting of several males and females. In their family groups, females fill positions of dominance and power (matriarchal). In large family groups, each lemur occupies a position of power in a hierarchical system. These positions are maintained through grooming privileges where subordinate lemurs groom dominant individuals. Dominant lemurs experience several privileges such as primary to food resources, primary rights to breed, and access to partners.

 

They emit several different types of calls for specific purposes. Some of these calls are very loud, especially those made to let neighboring lemur groups know that this territory is occupied. Another vocalization that is most commonly heard is an alarm call that is emitted to warn members of their group to watch out for predators that may be close by. They also emit calls. Red Ruffed Lemurs maintain territories to protect their food resources and resting grounds. They scent-mark the territorial boundaries with urine.

 

Reproduction

Breeding seasons last during the summer months. The males usually initiate the reproductive behavioral sequence by vocalizing with “woos” and scent marking. The gestation period is 3.5 months long and two to three young are born.

 

Both males and females take care of their young (biparental care). Females build a nest in which the infants are placed until they wean. Young wean at 4 months of age. Since a considerable proportion of behavior in their behavioral repertoire is gained through learning, parents train their young to find the right food items to eat, maintain territories to protect their feeding and resting areas, stay alert for predators, and take care of their young.

 

Conservation/Status

The most significant threat to the wild populations of Black and White Lemurs is the loss of their natural habitat mainly due to slash-and-burn agricultural practices, logging, and mining. These threats have led to the severe fragmentation of their habitat isolating wild populations in fragmented pockets leading to inbreeding and higher levels of disease incidence. Illegal hunting and trapping, currently prevalent have also had a detrimental effect on their numbers in the wild. Since Black and White Lemurs are only found in Madagascar, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature has categorized them as CRITICALLY ENDANGERED.