![]() ![]() Two species of lemurs may coexist in the same forest due to different diets. Most eat a wide variety of fruits and leaves, while some are specialists. They also have seasonal breeding and female social dominance. Lemurs have a relatively low basal metabolic rate, and as a result may exhibit dormancy such as hibernation or torpor. ![]() Lemurs are generally the most social of the strepsirrhine primates, and communicate more with scents and vocalizations than with visual signals. As with all strepsirrhine primates, they have a "wet nose" ( rhinarium). However, their brain-to-body size ratio is smaller than that of anthropoid primates. Lemurs share many common basal primate traits, such as divergent digits on their hands and feet, and nails instead of claws (in most species). Lemurs range in weight from the 30-gram (1.1 oz) mouse lemur to the 9-kilogram (20 lb) indri. Most species have been discovered or promoted to full species status since the 1990s however, lemur taxonomic classification is controversial and depends on which species concept is used. Until shortly after humans arrived on the island around 2,000 years ago, there were lemurs as large as a male gorilla. Due to Madagascar's highly seasonal climate, lemur evolution has produced a level of species diversity rivaling that of any other primate group. Lemurs share resemblance with other primates, but evolved independently from monkeys and apes. ![]()
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