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Animal care staff attend PTAG workshop in Jacksonville, FL

By Cathy Williams, D.V.M. Curator, Duke Lemur Center  At the end of March, four members of the Duke Lemur Center husbandry (animal care) staff attended a planning workshop for the Prosimian Taxon Advisory Group (PTAG) at the Jacksonville Zoo in Jacksonville, Florida. The PTAG is a collaborative group of representatives from AZA-accredited zoos and conservation […]

Notes from the Field: Dwarf and mouse lemur research in Anjajavy, Madagascar

by Marina Blanco, Ph.D. Post-Doctoral Project Coordinator, DLC-SAVA Conservation We recently conducted a research mission at Anjajavy, targeting two small-bodied nocturnal lemurs: Microcebus (mouse lemurs) and Cheirogaleus (dwarf lemurs). Broadly speaking, there are two projects we are interested in: (1) we would like to include Anjajavy’s mouse lemurs to our comprehensive database to help elucidate […]

Recent Births: 2018 Infants!

It’s birth season here at the Duke Lemur Center! Birth season began in December with the arrival of Elagabalus (“Gabe”), an endangered sifaka born December 23! Different species breed and give birth at different times, so infants should continue arriving through July and even August, concluding with the last mouse and dwarf lemur births. As birth season draws […]

For a glimpse of a world ruled by women, look at lemurs. (They keep the men in check.)

By Elizabeth Anne Brown. Originally published in the Durham News & Observer on March 20, 2018. Liesl, a 9-year-old ring-tailed lemur with the attitude of an Amazon warrior, is the undisputed matriarch of the North Carolina pine forest her family calls home. She and her troop preside over 14 acres of land, foraging alongside squirrels […]

Charlie’s Travelogue II: Madagascar, 2-24-2018

By Charlie Welch, DLC Conservation Coordinator February 24, 2018 ANTALAHA Today the whole DLC-SAVA team headed south, to the town of Antalaha. First stop was the tree nursery belonging to Madam Marie Helene KAM HYO. Marie Helene is a pharmacist by training and by passion the proprietor of Macolline Reserve – she is a genuine […]

Charlie’s Travelogue: Madagascar, 02-22-2018

By Charlie Welch, DLC Conservation Coordinator February 22, 2018 Click here for the second installment of Charlie’s Travelogue I arrived in Sambava on Thursday of last week and after settling in to my SAVA home away from home, the Orchidea Beach Hotel, spent the first days meeting with DLC-SAVA project manager Lanto Andrianandrasana. Project coordinator […]

VIDEO: What mouse lemurs can teach us about the aging brain

Like humans, mouse lemurs sometimes develop amyloid brain plaques and other Alzheimer’s-like symptoms as they age. Because mouse lemurs are primates, they are a closer genetic match to humans than mice or rats are. The Duke Lemur Center’s non-invasive research on these tiny primate cousins could help explain the initial stages of Alzheimer’s and other […]

Some lemurs are loners, others crave connection

By Robin Smith. DURHAM, N.C. — If lemurs were on Facebook, Fern would have oodles of friends, liking and commenting on their posts. Captain Lee, on the other hand, would rarely send a friend request. Best buddies Fern and Alena at the Duke Lemur Center in Durham, North Carolina. Photo by Ipek Kulahci. These are […]