Lepilemuridae
Author
Russell A. Mittermeier
Author
Anthony B. Rylands
Author
Don E. Wilson
text
2013
2013-03-31
Lynx Edicions
Barcelona
Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 3 Primates
66
75
book chapter
70179
10.5281/zenodo.6635114
f13a8ba3-0686-4bb8-b1f1-7906d3c7d592
978-84-96553-89-7
6635114
14.
Nosy Be Sportive Lemur
Lepilemur tymerlachsoni
French:
Lépilémur des Hawk
/
German:
Nosy-Be-Wieselmaki
/
Spanish:
Lémur saltador de Nosy Be
Other common names:
Hawks’ Sportive Lemur
,
Nosy Be Weasel Lemur
Taxonomy.
Lepilemur tymerlachsoni Louis et al., 2006
,
Madagascar, province of Antsiranana, Nosy Be, Lokobe National Park (c.13° 23’ 3, 48° 18’ E).
The taxonomy of sportive lemurs in this part of Madagascar is still unclear, especially the relationship between this species and
L. dorsalis
and L. mattermeieri. Monotvnic.
Distribution.
NW Madagascar, confined to the Lokobe region on Nosy Be. This may or may not be the species that occurred on the island of Nosy Komba as well, but in any case sportive lemurs have not been observed there for several years; in 2007, D. Zinner and coworkers found that some specimens from the mainland had identical mtDNA to that of the type specimen of the Nosy Be Sportive Lemur.
Descriptive notes.
Head—body ¢.23 cm, tail ¢.25 cm; weight 840 g. A small to medium-sized species of sportive lemurs. The dorsum is light brownish-gray, and the upper one-half of the back, the anterior aspects of the thighs, and the edges of the extremities are a light, diffuse reddish-brown. A dark-brown to black midline stripe is present from the head to the lower one-half of the back. The underside is a light grayish-white, and the tail is a uniform light reddish-gray to brown. The mask-like face is gray.
Habitat.
Primary and secondary tropical moist lowland forests that are subject to an annual dry season. The Nosy Be Sportive Lemur appears to be more common in secondary forest.
Food and Feeding.
Leaves, fruit, and bark.
Breeding.
Births occur from August through November, and mothers typically produce a single young.
Activity patterns.
Nocturnal and arboreal.
Movements, Home range and Social organization.
This species favors tree holes in dense primary forest for sleeping, but it will seek vegetation tangles in more open deciduous forest.
Status and Conservation.
CITES Appendix I. Classified as Data Deficient on The [UCN Red List. However, at the IUCN/SSC Lemur Red-Listing Workshop held in July 2012,
L. tymerlachsoni
was assessed as critically endangered. In areas where logging has reduced availability of sleeping sites, nesting boxes have been provided. Individual Nosy Be Sportive Lemurs are still frequently caught for illegal sale to tourists. The only protected area in which it occurs is the Lokobe Strict Nature Reserve.
Bibliography.
Andrews et al. (1998), Louis, Engberg et al. (2006), Mittermeier et al. (2010), Petter & Petter (1971), Raxworthy & Rakotondraparany (1988), Zinner et al. (2007).