Looking for Lemurs: Species Found at the Lemur Research Project in Madagascar

If you're joining the Lemur Research Project in Madagascar, you won’t just be exploring the last of the remaining Malagasy highland forests; you’ll be sharing them with some of the island’s most extraordinary residents. Get ready to meet some of the research site's locals!

1. Aye-ayes (recently discovered in the area)

IUCN Red List Category: Endangered

Scientific Name: Daubentonia madagascariensis

The Spooky Species

The aye-aye is arguably one of the most fascinating lemur species, and perhaps the strangest looking too. With their large, glowing eyes, bat-like ears, and a long, thin middle finger on each hand, aye-ayes have earned a reputation as one of the 'weirdest primates on Earth'. 

As the world's largest nocturnal primate, the aye-aye embodies the thrill of night surveys on the project. Spotting one in the wild can feel like seeing a creature straight out of folklore. In fact, local myths often cast the aye-aye as a bad omen, which has sadly fuelled hunting pressures. 

Excitingly, aye-ayes were only recently confirmed at the Lemur Research Project in Madagascar, first revealed in the research area by camera traps that captured their distinctive probing finger in action! Fun fact: Maurice, King Julien's royal advisor in the animated movie Madagascar (2005), is actually an aye-aye!

2. Indris

IUCN Red List Category: Critically Endangered

Scientific Name: Indri indri

The Leap-star Singers

The indri is the largest living lemur, and one of our favourites here in the office! With their striking green eyes, expressive faces and their adorable teddy-bear-like ears, indris are an incredible sight in the wild. Especially as, unlike many other lemur species, indris cannot survive in captivity. That's why safeguarding their rainforest home is so important, and a real highlight of the project is the rare chance to encounter indris in the wild.

One thing which truly sets indris apart from other lemur species is their voice! Their long, melodic songs echo through the rainforest, used to mark territory and strengthen family bonds; they can be heard from miles away. Their songs are so powerful and unique that they will stay with you long after you leave Madagascar. 

Unlike aye-ayes, indri lemurs are revered. In some Malagasy traditions, indris are considered sacred and believed to embody the spirits of ancestors. These cultural beliefs have helped protect indris from hunting for generations, but sadly, they are critically endangered due to their shrinking habitat.

Fun fact: Indris are phenomenal jumpers, able to leap up to 10 meters from tree to tree in the forest canopy!

3. Diademed sifakas

IUCN Red List Category: Critically Endangered

Scientific Name: Propithecus diadema

The Royal Bouncers

While King Julien may have given ring-tailed lemurs a regal status, diademed sifakas are the true royalty of the Malagasy forests. With their thick, multi-coloured fur of white, gold, and charcoal, and their silver "diadem" (an ornamental headband worn by royalty), they are often referred to as the "jewel of the forest".

What makes diademed sifakas especially fascinating is how they move. In the trees, they are agile sideway leapers, but when they come down to the ground, they don't walk like other lemur species; instead, all sifaka species bound sideways on two feet. For diademed sifakas, they almost take star-jump-like leaps forward. It's one of the most unusual and memorable behaviours of any lemur species.

Diademed sifakas live in small family groups, spending most of their time in the canopy foraging for fruit, seeds, and leaves. Interestingly, their range overlaps with indris, but they do not compete for food as they feed at different levels of the forest, often seeking out different plants. Unfortunately, like indris, they are critically endangered, with slash-and-burn farming and habitat loss posing the greatest threats to their survival.

Fun fact: Sifakas are sacred sun worshippers and religiously bask in the early morning sun before heading out to forage for food.

4. Common brown lemurs

IUCN Red List Category Listing: Vulnerable

Scientific Name: Eulemur fulvus

The Charismatic Cult-classics

The common brown lemur may not have the bright markings of some of Madagascar's rarer species, but what they lack in colour, they make up for in character! With their soft brown fur, curious expressions, and vivid orange eyes, these lemurs are a familiar sight in Malagasy forests.

Common brown lemurs are highly social, living in groups that can number up to 30 individuals! They are active during the day, spending most of their time foraging. Their adaptability has allowed them to live in a wide range of habitats across Madagascar, making them the most common lemur species. 

However, even these adaptable primates face increasing pressure from habitat loss and hunting. Though they are currently listed as vulnerable, their numbers continue to decline. As a volunteer on the Lemur Research Project, you'll help to habituate common brown lemur families for study to support conservation strategies that benefit not just the species but the wider forest ecosystem.

Fun fact: Common brown lemurs are one of the few primates known to eat millipedes, not just as food, but also as a form of insect repellent. They rub the millipedes on their fur to ward off parasites. Madagascar characters: The background characters of the animated film Madagascar are mainly depicted as common brown lemurs!

5. Eastern lesser bamboo lemurs

IUCN Red List Category: Vulnerable

Scientific Name: Hapalemur griseus

The Soft and Squidgies 

The eastern lesser bamboo lemur is one of Madagascar's smaller and more elusive primates. With their soft grey-brown fur and rounded faces, they have an almost gentle, plush appearance that makes them easy to love. They spend most of their lives hidden in dense vegetation, which makes spotting them in the wild a real highlight.

As their name suggests, they have a very specialised diet, feeding almost entirely on bamboo. This makes them one of the few primates adapted to digest the tough, fibrous plant, which can even contain small amounts of cyanide! 

Despite their adaptability, eastern lesser bamboo lemurs are classified as vulnerable, threatened by deforestation, slash-and-burn agriculture, and the loss of bamboo stands. 

Fun fact: Because of their bamboo-heavy diet, these lemurs play a crucial role in maintaining the health and regeneration of Madagascar's bamboo forests.

6. Eastern woolly lemurs

IUCN Red List Category: Vulnerable

Scientific Name: Avahi laniger

The Warm Fuzzies

The eastern woolly lemur is a small, nocturnal primate best known for its thick, soft coat, which helps it stay warm in Madagascar's cooler highland forests. With their large, round eyes adapted for night vision, they spend their nights quietly foraging for leaves, buds, and flowers. During the day, they can often be seen clinging to tree trunks, resting in pairs or family groups.

Eastern woolly's create small, monogamous family units, residing in pairs with their offspring and have long-lasting, close bonds. They spend most of their lives living in trees but will occasionally descend to drink and to move between tree groves.

Fun fact: Eastern woolly lemurs are sometimes called "avahis" by locals, and unlike most primates, they rarely make loud calls, communicating instead with soft grunts and whistles.

7. Weasel sportive lemurs

IUCN Red List Category: Vulnerable

Scientific Name: Lepilemur mustelinus

The Weasel-y Good Sports

The weasel sportive lemur is another nocturnal resident of Madagascar's forests, named for its slender, weasel-like body and large, reflective eyes.

Despite their small size, they're incredibly agile, able to leap between vertical tree trunks with ease during nighttime foraging. When on the ground, they will alternate between hopping on all four feet or leaping on their hind legs like a kangaroo. 

Sportive lemurs are solitary by nature and are known for their territorial behaviour, often defending their feeding areas with loud, distinctive calls. The weasel sportive lemur is currently listed as vulnerable, with habitat destruction posing the greatest threat to its survival.

Fun fact: Despite their shy appearance, sportive lemurs get their name from their energetic, bounding movements and the "sportive" way they leap through the trees.

8. Goodman's mouse lemurs

IUCN Red List Category: Near Threatened

Scientific Name: Microcebus lehilahytsara

The Pocket-Sized Mousketeers

The Goodman's mouse lemur is one of the tiniest primates in the world, weighing just around 60 grams, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. With their big, round eyes and reddish-brown fur, they are both adorable and elusive, only emerging at night to forage. Their diet is impressively varied for such a small primate, ranging from fruit and nectar to insects and even the occasional small vertebrate.

Only identified as a distinct species in 2005, Goodman’s mouse lemurs are a fascinating discovery. They live within female-dominated social systems, where females not only take charge but also tend to win food disputes. While generally solitary, they often sleep in same-sex groups of two or four individuals. 

Despite their size, mouse lemurs are surprisingly tough. Research has shown they can enter a state of torpor (a kind of "mini-hibernation") to survive periods of food scarcity. Fun fact: The beloved character Mort from the Madagascar films was inspired by a Goodman’s mouse lemur!

9. Crossley's dwarf lemurs

IUCN Red List Category: Vulnerable

Scientific Name: Cheirogaleus crossleyi

The Secret Keepers & Sleepers

Crossley's dwarf lemurs are nocturnal primates with rounded faces marked by dark eye-rings. Like other dwarf lemurs, they are small and secretive, spending most of their time feeding under the cover of night.

Their ability to hibernate is a rare trait among primates! Crossley's dwarf lemurs can enter long periods of torpor during the dry season, conserving energy until food becomes plentiful again. Interestingly, they store fat in their tails to provide energy during hibernation.

Fun fact: Dwarf lemurs are the only primates in the world known to hibernate for extended periods, sometimes for several months at a time.

10. Sibree's dwarf lemurs

Photo Credit: Fran Wiesner/ iNaturalist/ Creative Commons.

IUCN Red List Category: Critically Endangered

Scientific Name: Cheirogaleus sibreei

The Comeback Kids

Sibree's dwarf lemur is one of Madagascar's rarest and least-studied primates, living only in small pockets of high-altitude rainforest, such as the research site! Small, nocturnal, and elusive, it is specially adapted to the cooler mountain climate with its thick fur and compact build.

Like other dwarf lemurs, it feeds on fruit, nectar, and insects, and survives seasonal food shortages by entering hibernation, a weird-and-wonderful strategy for a primate. Unfortunately, Sibree's dwarf lemur is considered critically endangered, threatened by its tiny range and the continued habitat loss.

Fun fact: This species was once thought to be extinct until its rediscovery in 2001, a striking reminder of the hidden wonders still waiting to be uncovered in Madagascar!

Bonus: Ring-tailed lemurs at Lemur Park!

While ring-tailed lemurs don't live at the La Mananara research site, you don't have to miss out on meeting Madagascar's most famous primates! Volunteers will visit Lemur Park at the beginning of their volunteering journey, where the King Juliens of the lemur world roam freely in a safe, semi-wild environment. With their iconic striped tails and cheeky personalities, it's the perfect way to start your Madagascar adventure.

IUCN Red List Category: Endangered

Scientific Name: Lemur catta

The King Juliens

Ring-tailed lemurs are the poster species of Madagascar. Unlike many of their canopy-dwelling cousins, ring-tails spend much of their time on the ground in large, female-led groups.

They’re incredibly social and known best for sitting in an upright yoga-esque position, with arms outstretched, to warm themselves in the sun! Fun fact: Ring-tailed lemurs settle disputes with “stink fights,” rubbing scent glands on their tails and wafting them dramatically at rivals! A fitting King Julien quote: "After much deep and profound brain things inside my head, I have decided to thank you for bringing peace to our home."

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By joining this project, you’ll do more than just encounter fascinating lemur species; you’ll be part of the effort to protect them. From surveys and reforestation to community outreach, every moment you spend here helps secure a future for Madagascar’s forests and the remarkable lemurs that make them so special. Head over to the project page now to get involved: Lemur Research Project in Madagascar.

This article uses material from Madagascar Fandom Wiki at Fandom and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License.