Social Behavior
A pair of free ranging coquerel's sifaka relax in a natural habitat enclosure. Click image for larger version.
Coquerel's sifaka live in social groups of between 3 and 10 individuals, and age and sex composition of the groups vary widely. Females are dominant to males, which gives them preferential access to food and the choice of with whom to mate. A home range of between 10 and 22 acres (4 - 9 ha) is maintained by the wild groups. However, within this area, a core territory of two to three hectares is utilized over 60% of the time.
At the Lemur Center sifakas are maintained in family groups of up to six members. Breeding occurs in late summer to early fall and single infants are born in late winter to early spring.