Called by the French Makis—Restricted to Madagascar—Their Activity—Different Species—How to Distinguish them—[THE RING-TAILED LEMUR]—Reason for the Name—Tail—Colour of Body—Eye—Hand and Foot—Geographical Range—Anatomical Peculiarities—Playfulness in Captivity—[THE WHITE-FRONTED LEMUR]—Specimen in the Zoological Gardens—[THE LEMUR OF MAYOTTE]—Where Found—Colour—Manner of Life—[THE MONGOOSE LEMUR]—Description of one sent to Buffon—[THE RUFFED LEMUR]—Described by Ellis—Domesticated Specimens—[THE BLACK LEMUR]—Geographical Range—Hand—Foot—[GENUS CHEIROGALE]—Bushy Tails—Resemblance to the Hapalemur—Nocturnal Habits—Difficult to Distinguish—[THE FORKED-CROWNED CHEIROGALE]—Wonderful Powers of Leaping—Cry—Reason for the Name—A Nest-making Variety—Specimens in the Jardin des Plantes—Resemblance to the Galagos
THE animals which are included in the genus Lemur are popularly called by the French the Makis. They are restricted, geographically, to Madagascar, and to some of the adjacent islands, and are not found elsewhere. Instead of roaming along the boughs and through the woods with a restless activity during the night, after the manner of the Lemuroida already described, the Makis move, gambol, and jump with great agility by daylight. Resting during the hours of the night, they run along the branches after daylight, searching for their food, which consists principally of fruit and occasionally birds’ eggs, and even of the small birds themselves. They are very active, and as the conformation of their limbs adapts them for an arboreal existence, they rarely come to the ground.
Having, without exception, all the peculiarities of animals which move and prey by day, it is very curious that the species of Makis should be classified under a genus bearing the name of Lemur. But in this instance, as in many others, the original derivation of the name has but slight or even no reference to the peculiarities of the animals which are thus artificially designated by it, and of course great confusion results.
There are many species included in the genus Lemur, and there is great difficulty in discriminating between them, for many of them are very variable, and therefore it is probable that it will be much restricted with the advance of the knowledge of the zoology of Madagascar. All have a long snout, a small, flat, and long skull, and a long body with narrow flanks. The hind limbs are rather longer than the front ones, and there is a long furry tail. The feet and hands are short, and the great toe is broad; moreover, the ears are moderate in length, and are either tufted or are hairy. In some kinds the head is surrounded by a ruff of fur, and the colour of the hair differs according to the species, and is even different in individuals of the same kind.
Thus, a black Lemur, called Lemur niger, has a female which has white whiskers, and another with a black-and-white fur, which is called the Ruffed Lemur (Lemur varius), has a young one which is red, so that all these different tints having been formerly recognised as belonging to different kinds or species are now proved to be natural varieties of fewer species.
The males of many kinds differ from the females in colour, and from the young also; moreover, at certain times of the year, according to the age of the animal, the fur changes its tints, and a corresponding alteration is produced by different food, so that the great number of species of Lemur described by naturalists must be regarded with suspicion.
A careful plan in discriminating the species is to divide them after the fashion—but not with the same intention—of the late Dr. Gray, of the British Museum. He made certain groups, and called each a genus, but this last proceeding was not correct. One of his groups is as follows:—For example, Lemurs with faces without a ruff, the tail ringed, and a bald spot above the inside of the wrist.[119] The first kind about to be described belongs to this set, and is
THE RING-TAILED LEMUR—THE MACACO OF BUFFON—LEMUR CATTA—THE CAT-LIKE LEMUR.
All these titles refer to the pretty Cat-like Lemur with chinchilla-grey tints, and a banded tail of black and grey rings, which is commonly to be seen at the Zoological Gardens. It is so familiar, and has been so carefully examined, that it is advisable it should occupy some space in this description of its natural history.
The naturalist’s name for this creature aptly denotes a Cat-like resemblance—a similitude due, perhaps, partly to size, certain tints of colouring, a peculiar arching of the back, and the long tail carried aloft, recalling at once purring Pussy. The tail, a striking feature, is several inches longer than the head and body taken together; it is clothed with abundance of long, soft, fluffy hairs, and alternately marked with rings of black and white. The predominant colour of the body and legs is chinchilla-grey, with a sprinkling of reddish hairs or rusty wash on the back; the under parts, however, are pure white. The cosy covering of delicate woolly fur, shorter than on the tail, stands out, instead of being smooth and sleek. The head is of a conical shape; the flattish depressed oval ears, by no means prominent, are sparsely hairy within, and are edged with short white hairs. The muzzle is nearly bald and black; the eyes are broadly encircled by the same colour, the remainder of the head and throat being snow-white. The eye, full, conspicuous, and softly expressive, is of a rich orange hue, with a dark pupil, and the eyebrows are represented by a few long black straggling hairs. There is a moustache and beard, but no vibrissæ (smellers), as in the Cat-tribe. The hind limb far exceeding the fore-limb in height, mainly causes the attitude of back-arching when on the ground. The fore foot is a kind of diminutive flat-nailed hand, with a proportionally short thumb, and it is hairy above, but naked below, and all the fingers have expanded cushions on their last joints. The hand is not capable of being closely clenched, and the thumb reaches only to the middle of the palm. The hind feet are large, and there is a strong great toe-thumb. Moreover, a true claw adorns the next toe, and in many other respects there is a certain agreement between the foot and hand. Both are black-soled, and the beautiful tracery of the pronounced cross lines, furrows, and folds would delight the heart of a gipsy fortune-teller. The mammæ, or teats, are two in number, and are placed near the armpits. Usually the species of Lemur have but one, or at most two, little ones at a birth, and the period of gestation is about one hundred and ten days, the young Lemur being born almost naked, and nearly without fur. Their hairs are short and sparsely distributed, except on the head, where they form a kind of belt around the eyes. They cling on to their mother’s fur, and, holding on to that over her stomach and abdomen, they lie across her, so that when she draws up her legs she either hides the little one effectually, or it may be seen hairless in the folds of the mother’s groins. After a while, and as the young Lemur becomes better clothed and stronger, it leaves this snug and warm retreat, and crawls up on to the mother’s back and shoulders, and seizes her fur, and holds on with such tenacity that she can jump and bound about without unseating her little burthen.