The time is now

Duke Lemur Center

2 days ago

Don't just take our word for it—legendary British comedian and lemur aficionado John Cleese explains how YOU can help lemurs by symbolically adopting a lemur from the DLC 💙

➡️ lemur.duke.edu/adopt

Back in 2022, John Cleese leant his iconic voice to this animated short celebrating #WorldLemurDay. With the revamp of our Adopt a Lemur program, supporting lemurs is easier than ever—all you have to do is purchase an Adopt package for one of FIVE available species, use your code to unlock our online portal, and sign up for quarterly updates on your adoptee and their family. It sure beats cleaning your blender! 😉 ... See MoreSee Less

Duke Lemur Center

3 days ago

Legendary British comedian and lemur supporter John Cleese explains how YOU can help lemurs by symbolically adopting a lemur from the DLC 💙

➡️ lemur.duke.edu/adopt

Become a "lemur parent" through our newly revamped Adopt a Lemur program! Don't worry, our trained animal care staff will do all of the work to keep the lemurs happy and healthy—all you have to do is purchase an Adopt package for one of FIVE available species, use your code to unlock our online portal, and sign up for quarterly updates on your adoptee and their family. Being a "parent" has never been easier! 😉 ... See MoreSee Less

Duke Lemur Center

5 days ago

It’s a #WorldLemurDay party with Sophia’s family! 🌍

This rambunctious ring-tailed lemur troop enjoyed lots of fun snacks and enrichment items, courtesy of Keeper Sarah K.! LEMURS cookies were made of oatmeal, peaches, banana, maple syrup, and primate chow, the back of the sign was smeared with banana baby food, and the hanging holee-rollers were filled with fruits and veggies from the family’s diet. Momma Sophia was especially fond of the cookies, while dad Randy was a pro with the rollers, and youngest offspring Elisabet and Doris went crazy for the fresh-cut bamboo and baby food sign 🤩

Ring-tailed lemurs like these are the most recognizable lemur species, but there are just over 100 distinct species living in Madagascar! 98% of these species are endangered, with nearly one third just a step away from extinction. You can help us protect these critically endangered primates by making a donation, symbolically adopting a lemur, buying DLC merchandise, or simply sharing our content to raise awareness for Earth’s most endangered mammals 💙

🎥: Abby Flyer and Anna Scotton ... See MoreSee Less

Duke Lemur Center

5 days ago

Tomorrow is the big day—Halloween AND #WorldLemurDay! 🥳

Get in the festive spirit with this video of 38-year-old aye-aye Poe enjoying a delicious fresh pumpkin, carved by our keeper staff. Poe uses his specialized fingers to scoop tasty pumpkin guts out of the Jack-o-Lantern (through its nose!) and scrape pumpkin shavings into his mouth 🎃

As #WorldLemurDay2025 falls on Halloween, aye-ayes (often considered the world's spookiest primate) are this year's mascot! For many years, scientists thought aye-ayes were actually rodents, due to their ever-growing incisors and lack of tooth comb. Aye-ayes are the largest nocturnal primates on Earth, weighing about six pounds and measuring about fifteen inches long 😱

Among the seventeen lemur species that have unfortunately gone extinct was the giant aye-aye, Daubentonia robusta, which was about three times as large as modern aye-ayes. Like many species, the giant aye-aye only went extinct less than 1,000 years ago. Here at the DLC, we are dedicated to protecting these incredible creatures and preventing any more species from disappearing 💙

🎥: Keeper Lauren ... See MoreSee Less

Duke Lemur Center

7 days ago

Tiny pumpkins for tiny lemurs 🎃

Our countdown to Halloween and #WorldLemurDay this Friday continues with our smallest nocturnal residents! Gray mouse lemurs Taro and Tumbleweed had a blast licking honey from miniature pumpkins in their free-ranging room. We tried to offer some to fat-tailed dwarf lemur Kiwi Bird and her family, but they preferred to enjoy their breakfast in bed as they gear up for the beginning of hibernation season 😋

Both of these tiny primates provide incredible avenues for non-invasive research! Gray mouse lemurs develop symptoms similar to Alzheimer’s as they age, allowing DLC researchers to run cognitive trials (puzzles, mazes etc) with aging mouse lemurs to hopefully learn something about our own cognitive decline. Fat-tailed dwarf lemurs’ incredible months-long hibernation could teach us how to slow the human metabolism, unlocking new potential in the realms of space travel and medical care. We follow a strict do-no-harm policy, so all of our research is non-invasive, and lemurs are motivated to participate in exchange for tasty treats! 🔍

🎥: Abby Flyer ... See MoreSee Less