Habitat/Conservation
Once considered one of the most endangered mammals in the world, the aye-aye has in recent years been shown to be much more widely distributed than originally thought. This is due to the fact that recent years have seen an influx of researchers into Madagascar, including those specifically looking for this rare and elusive animal. Current findings indicate that the aye-aye is sparsely distributed along the east coast and in the northwestern forests of Madagascar.
The main threats to the survival of the aye-aye are loss of habitat and hunting pressure. Unlike many lemur species that are hunted for food, aye-ayes are sometimes killed as crop-threatening pests in agricultural areas, and also because their bizarre appearance has traditionally led many villagers to regard the animal as an evil omen which must be killed on sight to avoid bringing bad luck onto an entire village. Aye-ayes are found in at least 16 protected areas, and several of these locations appear to have healthy populations of this lemur.
Worldwide, the captive population of aye-ayes stands at 32--18 males and 14 females. The Lemur Center holds 20 aye-ayes--9 males and 11 females. Breeding has also occurred at the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust which holds 6 (4.2). In addition, the Bristol Zoo, London Zoo, Paris Zoo and Tokyo Zoo each holds one pair of aye-ayes.