The Ring-tailed Lemur as pictured above looks a lot to me like a 4 pound squirrel. It isn't part of the rodent family at all though. In fact, it's actually a primate. Unlike its monkey cousins and contrary to this picture, the Ring-tailed Lemur spends a lot of time on the ground in its native country of Madagascar.
Ring-tailed Lemurs are social animals that live in small packs called troops. A troop of lemurs can be as large as 30 animals but typically has around 15-17 members. Female Ring-Tails are the troop leaders and stay with their troops for life. Males will take up with a troop but can move from troop to troop.
The Ring-tailed Lemur enjoys a diet of fruits, figs, flowers, leaves and insects, you know everything in the Madagascar Food Pyramid. :) They aren't great swimmers so they avoid going into water. Through grooming and a steady diet of sun bathing, they rarely soil their fur.
When the Ring-Tailed Lemur troop is threatened they sound an alarm thats very distinctive. Check it out.
The Ring-tailed Lemur has a breeding season that lasts about 2 weeks. The gestation period lasts around 130 days. One way that males in troops compete for dominance is through stink fights. I know right? See lemurs have glands in their wrists and under their arms. A male will get his tail filled with stink by rubbing it under his arms and then shake it at his opponent. I think whoever walks away the smelliest is the looser. You can view this break dance battle in the video below at your own risk. I never know who's won those either LOL.
Timbavati Wildlife Park is home to a small troop of Ring-tailed lemurs and we hope you enjoy them on your next visit to our park.
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