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Fruit-loving lemurs score higher on spatial memory tests

February 21, 2014 — Food-finding tests in five lemur species show that fruit-eaters may have better spatial memory than lemurs with a more varied diet. The results support the idea that relying on foods that are seasonally available and far-flung gives a competitive edge to individuals with certain cognitive abilities — such as remembering where […]

Lemur lovers sync their scents

January 31, 2014. The strength of a lemur couple’s bond is reflected by the similarity of their scents, finds a new study. Read the full story in Duke Today at http://today.duke.edu/2014/01/smellysifaka.

Lemur babies of older moms are less likely to get hurt

December 18, 2013. A long-term study of aggression in lemurs finds that infants born to older mothers are less likely to get hurt than those born to younger mothers. The researchers base their findings on an analysis of detailed medical records for more than 240 ring-tailed lemurs — cat-sized primates with long black-and-white banded tails […]

Hibernating lemurs hint at the secrets of sleep

September 4, 2013. By studying hibernation, a Duke University team is providing a window into why humans sleep. Observations of a little-known primate called the fat-tailed dwarf lemur in captivity and the wild has revealed that it goes for days without the deepest part of sleep during its winter hibernation season. The findings support the […]

Social network size predicts social cognitive skills in primates

June 26, 2013. The size of a primate’s social group can predict cognitive skills related to social abilities, according to research published in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Evan MacLean and colleagues from Duke University. Read the full story here.

Social animals have more social smarts

June 26, 2013. Lemurs from species that hang out in big tribes are more likely to steal food behind your back instead of in front of your face. This behavior suggests that primates who live in larger social groups tend to have more “social intelligence,” a new study shows. Read the full story here.

Personality test finds some mouse lemurs shy, others bold

June 18, 2013. Anyone who has ever owned a pet will tell you that it has a unique personality. Yet only in the last 10 years has the study of animal personality started to gain ground with scientists. Now researchers have found distinct personalities in the grey mouse lemur, the tiny, saucer-eyed primate native to […]

Primate hibernation more common than previously thought

May 2, 2013. Until recently, the only primate known to hibernate as a survival strategy was a creature called the western fat-tailed dwarf lemur, a tropical tree-dweller from the African island of Madagascar. But it turns out this hibernating lemur isn’t alone. In a new study, researchers report that two other little-known lemurs — Crossley’s […]