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Bamboo Lemur

Island Of Madagascar

Off The East Coast Of Africa

Peyrieras Madagascar Exotic Reserve

 

The bamboo or gentle lemurs are the lemurs in genus Hapalemur. These medium-sized primates live exclusively on Madagascar. The greater bamboo lemur, formerly known as Hapalemur simus, was considered part of this genus, but is now classified as belonging to the genus Prolemur.

 

Bamboo lemurs prefer damp forests where bamboo grows. Although they can be active any time of the day, they are often active just after dawn. Though primarily arboreal, they sometimes come down to the ground.

 

The lesser gentle lemurs live together in groups of three to five animals, which probably represent families composed of a male, one or two females, and their offspring. They communicate with a variety of sounds.

 

They are called bamboo lemurs because they almost exclusively eat bamboo. How bamboo lemurs can detoxify the high amounts of cyanide (from bamboo shoots) in their diets is unknown. Their life expectancy is up to 12 years.

 

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Uploaded on November 30, 2023
Taken on November 25, 2017