Celebrate #EarthDay by supporting the care and conservation of Earth's most endangered mammals 🌍
➡️ lemur.duke.edu/donate
98% of lemur species are vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered, with at least 17 species completely gone from the Earth. For some lemur species, like blue-eyed black lemurs, their wild population has dwindled to an estimated fewer than 1,000 individuals. Here at the Duke Lemur Center, we are committed to learning more about lemurs, protecting them in their natural habitat, and teaching the public why both of these things are so important 💙
Lemurs are not isolated; they are an important part of the ecosystems of Madagascar, one of Earth's most diverse biological hotspots. Many plants rely on lemurs for pollination and seed dispersal, and even more animals rely on those plants for food and shelter. Investing in the conservation of lemurs is an investment into protecting our beautiful, precious planet 🌿
The purpose of Earth Day is to demonstrate support for environmental protection, raise awareness about pollution, climate change, and deforestation, and inspire global action toward a sustainable future. It serves as a reminder to practice environmental stewardship and advocate for the planet. What better way to celebrate than investing in the work of the Duke Lemur Center?
📸: Sara Nicholson
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Coquerel's sifaka Albus shows off his goofy side 😝
Two-year-old Albus loves to play—with his siblings, with his parents, and sometimes just with his own tail! In these photos, he shows off his "play face," which is a signature expression that lemurs (most often sifakas) make to initiate play from family members. Albus has had a big personality since infancy, and his desire to goof off can sometimes make it hard for him to focus on training sessions. Luckily for Albus, he has two siblings who are more than willing to engage in friendly wrestling sessions and chase him through the bamboo forest! 🤩
📸: David Haring ... See MoreSee Less
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Red ruffed lemurs doing one of the things they do best: pollinating! 🌺
In Madagascar, critically endangered red ruffed lemurs love feasting on fruit, nectar, and pollen—and they love those same snacks at the Duke Lemur Center! Ruby's troop (Ruby, Buzz, Spock, Kitt, and Hubble) spent a beautiful spring day foraging for wild honeysuckle in their natural habitat enclosure. Ruffed lemurs are the largest pollinators in the world; pollen sticks to the ruffed fur around their faces and gets transported from flower to flower. The honeysuckle smelled amazing, so imagine how delicious it must have tasted to this hungry family! 💐
📸: Sara Sorraia ... See MoreSee Less
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Liesl's twins are getting more curious about their forest habitat 🤩
➡️ lemur.duke.edu/adopt/ultimate/liesl-infant
These six-week-old ring-tailed lemur twins are the offspring of 17-year-old Liesl and 11-year-old Schwepps. You won't see dad Schwepps in any photos with them, though, as older sister Hedwig has been very protective over her mom and new little brother and sister. It is very common in the lemur world for older siblings to help mom care for infants, as this gives them plenty of infant experience for when they eventually have their own offspring 💕
Ring-tailed lemurs at the DLC have different naming themes by family, and Liesl's offspring receive Austrian names. Previous infants include Edelweiss, Brigitta, Rolfe, Gretl, and Griselda. Dad Schwepps comes from a family who receive soda names. Because females are dominant in lemur troops, mom's naming theme wins out! 😎
Looking to make a huge impact on the care and conservation of Earth's most endangered mammals? For a tax-deductible donation of $20,000, you can symbolically adopt and name BOTH of Liesl's infants! Visit our website to learn more at lemur.duke.edu/ultimate or email us at adoptalemur@duke.edu ✨
📸: David Haring ... See MoreSee Less
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Recent photos of aye-ayes Nirina, Melisandre, and Binx 😍
Did you know that aye-ayes have the highest ear-to-body ratio of any primate? Their ears are an important part of their signature percussive foraging. When aye-ayes rapidly tap their spindly, skeletal middle fingers against logs or branches, their giant ears help them echolocate to find worms and other grubs in hollow sections of wood. Then, they utilize their rodent-style incisors to chew a hole in the wood, allowing their dextrous fingers to scoop out their snacks 🪱
📸: David Haring ... See MoreSee Less
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Looking for a fun, FREE activity this Saturday? Check out the DLC Museum of Natural History's monthly open house! 💀
✅ Where: 1013 Broad Street (NOT the main DLC campus)
✅ When: Saturday 4/25 from 1-4pm
✅ What: Take a look at the DLC's expansive fossil collection and our exhibit showcasing the evolutionary journey of lemurs and humans!
✅ How much: FREE!
Want to learn more? Visit lemur.duke.edu/fossil ✨ ... See MoreSee Less
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Can you believe how big Junius has gotten? 🤩
Coquerel's sifaka Junius, the great-grandson of Jovian aka Zoboomafoo, is six months old! Now fully independent from mom Francesca, Junius can often be found bouncing energetically around his family's screened-in outdoor patios and trying to entice dad Remus to wrestle with him. Junius and his family are currently in the training process for free-ranging; before they can spend their summer days out in the forest, the family must learn to come back inside at the sound of a dinner bell. Francesca and Remus are experienced free-rangers, but Junius is still getting used to the process. We hope to see this sifaka trio out in the woods come summertime! ☀️
📸: David Haring ... See MoreSee Less
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What better way to celebrate #EarthDay than with TWO new baby lemurs? 🤩
➡️ lemur.duke.edu/adopt/ultimate/liesl-infant
Meet Liesl’s twins! This ring-tailed lemur brother and sister, born on March 8th, are the eighth and ninth offspring of 17-year-old Liesl. 11-year-old Schwepps is a first-time dad. As is common in ring-tailed lemur troops, he is relatively uninvolved with infant care. Liesl spends most of her time with her older daughter, 10-year-old Hedwig, who has taken wonderfully to her new role as a big sister. Hedwig is very protective of her mom and new siblings; she frequently chases Schwepps away when he tries to approach and flirt with Liesl 😂
The female infant was born smaller (49 grams, compared to the male’s 59 grams) but has since surpassed her brother in size. Both infants are wide-eyed and curious about the world around them. They have started riding around on Liesl’s back while the family free-ranges in their 16-acre forest enclosure, even venturing off mom on occasion to climb small twigs and nibble on fresh leaves 🍃
Looking to make a huge impact on the care and conservation of Earth's most endangered mammals? For a tax-deductible donation of $20,000, you can symbolically adopt and name BOTH of Liesl's infants! Visit our website to learn more at lemur.duke.edu/ultimate or email us at adoptalemur@duke.edu ✨
📸: David Haring; Sarah M. (2) ... See MoreSee Less
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Every day is #EarthDay for our DLC-SAVA Conservation Team! 🌍
➡️ lemur.duke.edu/bamboo-charcoal-cleaner-energy
In Madagascar and other low-income countries, charcoal and firewood are still the dominant cooking fuels. But traditional charcoal involves cutting trees, a significant cause of deforestation, and for millions of women cooking daily meals for their families, exposure to smoke from dirty fuel causes respiratory disease. But we have a healthier, more sustainable solution: bamboo charcoal! 🔥
Bamboos are native in Madagascar and locally abundant. Some bamboo are so dense, they make excellent substitutes for wood—and because they can grow up to a meter a day, they’re much more renewable and sustainable than cutting trees. Using a highly efficient kiln, we create renewable bamboo charcoal. Every day, we produce enough charcoal to meet a family’s needs for a month 🎋
“In addition to traditional uses of bamboo, like building homes and fences, bamboo can also be used to make charcoal,” says DLC-SAVA Clean Energy Entrepreneur Ratiaray Judex. “We’re introducing [bamboo] to reduce the use of trees for charcoal... The fast growth of bamboo makes it better than trees. Just three to five years after planting, bamboo can be harvested for charcoal.”
➡️ lemur.duke.edu/donate
With sustainable development projects like these, the Duke Lemur Center is working with local communities to conserve both the forests and the lemurs. Our conservation projects in Madagascar are run exclusively on grants and donations. Support our work with a tax-deductible donation today! 💚
🎥: Riccardo Morrelas ... See MoreSee Less
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Celebrate #EarthDay by supporting the care and conservation of Earth's most endangered mammals 🌍
➡️ lemur.duke.edu/donate
98% of lemur species are vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered, with at least 17 species completely gone from the Earth. For some lemur species, like blue-eyed black lemurs, their wild population has dwindled to an estimated fewer than 1,000 individuals. Here at the Duke Lemur Center, we are committed to learning more about lemurs, protecting them in their natural habitat, and teaching the public why both of these things are so important 💙
Lemurs are not isolated; they are an important part of the ecosystems of Madagascar, one of Earth's most diverse biological hotspots. Many plants rely on lemurs for pollination and seed dispersal, and even more animals rely on those plants for food and shelter. Investing in the conservation of lemurs is an investment into protecting our beautiful, precious planet 🌿
The purpose of Earth Day is to demonstrate support for environmental protection, raise awareness about pollution, climate change, and deforestation, and inspire global action toward a sustainable future. It serves as a reminder to practice environmental stewardship and advocate for the planet. What better way to celebrate than investing in the work of the Duke Lemur Center?
📸: Sara Nicholson ... See MoreSee Less
3 CommentsComment on Facebook
Happy belated birthday to red ruffed lemur Spock, who turned one last week! 🥳
Spock, the youngest member of this family of five, has been too busy free-ranging to eat birthday cake! His family moved to a larger forest enclosure this year, so there are lots of new plants to taste and trees to climb. Unlike most diurnal lemurs, red ruffed troops don't all stick together as they move through the woods. This allows smaller sections of family to split off and forage. Spock's days include sunbathing with big siblings Kitt and Hubble, snacking on flowers with dad Buzz, and climbing to the treetops with mom Ruby. This also leaves plenty of time for big boy Spock to embark on solo expeditions to explore his new summer home! 💫
📸: Abby Flyer ... See MoreSee Less
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