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Dominated by the ring tail, roughly 800 lemurs
including brown and safika, also known as the white lemur, reside
in the reserve. The lemur is a prosimian, or pre-monkey, that evolved
around 50 million years ago. The lemurs’ now extinct cousins are
thought to be the lineal ancestors to humans. They have dog-like
noses, brilliant, round, bewitching eyes, and bodies proportioned
more like humans than apes. The ratio of the humerus bone in the
arm and the femur bone in the leg is approximately one-to-one with
apes and nearer to .75-to-one with humans. The lemur is closer to
the human ratio. Lemurs live in small family groups and sometimes
larger troops, where the females are dominant, which is unusual.
With most monkeys and great apes the males are larger and indisputably
dominant.
On our way back to the huts, we encountered some
white lemurs coming out of the trees and crossing the path on foot.
Watching a white lemur on foot is perhaps the most comical and delightful
display of awkward, unnatural grace I have ever seen. They move
laterally in short hops on their toes while standing straight up
with their long tails flowing perpendicular to their bodies, usually
facing the onlookers, much like a ballerina gliding and leaping
across the stage. Finally, they take a catapulting bound into a
tree, where their movements appear more natural. After having watched
them jump incredible distances through the trees and hang upside
down and eat, I had no idea that they would have more tricks in
their bag. Move over, dolphins and porpoises; this is real talent
in the wild.
We went into the forest
at around 8:00a.m. and walked a short time before finding a group
of four indri, high in the trees, waiting for the sun to warm them
up. After a while, they began moving around from tree to tree, slowly
making their way down. With the abruptness of a siren going off,
by turns and then in chorus, the resonating cry of their song could
be heard for miles, vibrating through the forest like a sonic boom,
silencing everyone and everything. It lasted for two to three minutes.
I wanted to applaud when it was over and wished I had brought a
tape recorder.
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