On May 29, experienced mom Sierra Mist gave birth to a healthy baby boy! This infant joins a close-knit family of five with mom, dad Licinius, and older brother and sister Meriadoc and Eowyn.
Two-year-old Eowyn has been particularly interested in her new baby brother, spending lots of time cuddling up with mom and grooming the baby. As the infant grows older and more adventurous, both older siblings have started playfully chasing him around their screened-in outdoor patio, seemingly eager to add another sibling into their already boisterous play sessions.
At 33 years old, dad Licinius is the oldest diurnal lemur currently living at the Duke Lemur Center. While ring-tailed lemur dads are not generally hands-on with their offspring, Licinius is a good sport when the baby jumps on his head and pulls on his tail. His older offspring also take plenty of time to groom their dad while mate Sierra Mist is busy with the infant.
At the Duke Lemur Center, ring-tailed lemurs are one of the only species whose naming theme depends on their family line. While Sierra Mist comes from a family who receive soda names and Licinius comes from a family with Greek names, all of their offspring together have been named after literary characters, such as Scout (To Kill a Mockingbird) and Gatsby (The Great Gatsby).
UPDATE: Sierra Mist’s infant has been named Gimli! Like older siblings Eowyn and Merry, Gimli shares his name with a Lord of the Rings character: Gimli the dwarf was a member of the titular Fellowship of the Ring in J.R.R. Tolkien’s novels.
Posted July 23, 2026.