The primate suborder that includes the lemurs, lorises, and related animals. This was the first suborder of primates to evolve. | Prosimii (prosimians) |
The big island on which lemurs are found today. Along with a few small neighboring islands, this is the only place in the world that lemurs have survived in the wild. | Madagascar |
The largest non-human Madagascar primate. During the early evening, they mark their territories in the tree tops with loud, piercing vocalizations. By doing this, they space themselves out in the forest. They are members of the family Indriidae. | indri |
A species of Madagascar primates that have long spring-like legs that allow them to jump over 30 feet from tree to tree. This evolutionary specialization of their legs forces them to hop rather than walk when on the ground. They are members of the Family Indriidae. | sifaka |
A very rare, mostly solitary species of Madagascar primates that have elongated, narrow fingers with claw-like compressed nails that are used, along with their long, curved, rodent-like incisor teeth, to get at grubs under tree bark and other hard to reach delicacies. They are the only members of the family Daubentoniidae. | aye-aye |
A South Asian prosimian in the superfamily Lorisoidea. They are about the size of domesticated cats. They are slow, cautious climbers and creepers on forest branches. They have unpleasant tasting poisonous saliva that they lick onto their fur. Mothers also lick the fur of their babies which helps to protect them from potential predators. | loris |
A small arboreal African prosimian in the superfamily Lorisioidea. They are fast hoppers that can jump 30 times their own body length. | galago or bush baby |
A close African relative of the Asian Loris. They are slow, cautious climbers and creepers on forest branches like lorises. | potto or angwantibo |
Rat-sized primates from some of the islands off Southeast Asia. Biochemically they are close to monkeys, but chromosomally they are unique among the primates. They are the only members of the prosimian infraorder Tarsiformes. Unlike the lemurs, they lack a long snout and a rhinarium, or moist, hairless pad at the end. They can rotate their heads nearly 180°, like owls. They have long hairless tails, except for tuffs on the end, like kangaroo rats. | tarsiers |