Fact Sheet
A juvenile aye-aye practices chewing on a branch. Click image for larger version.
Order: Primates; Suborder: Prosimii
Family: Daubentoniidae; Genus: Daubentonia
Species: madagascariensis
Related Species
The aye-aye is the only living member of the family Daubentoniidae, and is considered to be the most unusual of all primates.
Key Facts
Adult Size : 5.5 - 6.2 pounds
Social life : Solitary, nocturnal forager
Habitat : Moist forest - rainforest, occasionally found in dry forest
Diet : insect larvae, interior of the ramy nut, nectar and fungi
Lifespan : 26 years in captivity, unknown in the wild
Sexual maturity : 2 years, in captivity
Mating : No restricted season, births may occur at any time of year
Gestation : 160 days
Number of young : One offspring every 2 - 3 years
DLC Naming theme : creepy character names (Nosferatu, Endora, Merlin, etc.)
Malagasy names : Hay-Hay, Ahay, Aiay
Interesting Facts
- Aye-ayes are the largest nocturnal primates.
- Aye-ayes are one of the few solitary primates.
- Aye-ayes have a unique method of foraging: A large percentage of their diet consists of insect larvae that live inside dead wood. They find the larvae by tapping on branches and listening to the reverberations. When it finds a cavity in the wood (which may contain insect larvae), an aye-aye will bite through the outer layers of bark with his beaver-like teeth and reach a long, slender finger inside the hole to pull out the prey.
- Aye-ayes are killed in some parts of Madagascar because they are believed to be harbingers of death or misfortune or because they are agricultural pests. In other parts of the island, however, they are revered.