Red-Ruffed Lemur
Student Research at the DLC
One of the big projects that students do at Durham Academy is their 8th grade Independent Science Project. There are often a lot of interesting and fun topics, such as whether people do better on tests after exercise, if artificial sweeteners taste different than natural sugars in lemonade, and what ingredients make chocolate chip cookie...
Overview
The red-ruffed lemur (Varecia rubra) is a large quadrupedal lemur inhabiting a very small area of eastern Madagascar. Ruffed lemurs are some of the most strikingly beautiful of all lemurs and have a thick coat of deep chestnut red fur, well suited to the oftentimes wet and chilly environment of Madagacar’s eastern...
Feeding
Red ruffed lemurs are diurnal, with peak activity occurring in the early morning and in the evening. Their diet consists mostly of fruit, nectar and pollen–they are considered the most frugivorous of all the lemurs. Small amounts of leaves and seeds are also consumed, primarily during the dry season when fruit and nectar is scarce...
Reproduction
Ruffed lemur reproduction is highly seasonal. The animals breed in Madagascar between May and July with most infants born in September and October after a 102 day gestation. In North Carolina, breeding usually occurs in December/January with births in April or May. Unlike most lemurs, ruffed lemur females give birth to litters of up to...
Social Behavior
Ruffed lemurs appear to have a variable social system which changes depending on the season and the quality of their habitat. In some areas of Madagascar, the animals are found in small groups of two to five individuals, with a home range of 25 ha. In other areas, loose affiliations of between 18 and 32...
Habitat/Conservation
Red ruffed lemurs are restricted to the forests of the Masoala Peninsula near Maroantsetra in northeastern Madagascar. They have been seen just east of the Antainambalana River, which divides their range from that of the black and white ruffed lemurs. The future of wild populations of the red ruffed lemur became much brighter when, in...
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