Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 14.djvu/462

 442 LEMUR middle, but not in contact with each other or the canine, in front of which they are both placed. Muzzle elongated. Ears conspicu ous and tufted. Mammae two, pectoral. Vertebra : C7, D12, L7 (or D13, L6), S3, C27. Animals much about the size of a common cat, with fox-like faces, soft thick fur, and long tails well clothed with hair. Not having the same disproportionate size of the limbs as the last group, they are much more quadrupedal in their actions, walking on the ground or running along the branches of trees on all four feet, but also jump- Fia. 3. Skull of Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur cotta}. x |. Mus. Roy. Coll. Surgeons, uc, upper canine ; Ic, lower canine ; pm, premolars ; w, true molars. ing with marvellous agility. They are gregarious, living in small troops, are diurnal in their habits, but most active towards evening, when they make the woods resound with their loud cries, and feed, not only on fruits and buds, but also on eggs, young birds, and insects. When at rest or sleeping, they generally coil their long, bushy tails around their bodies, apparently for the sake of the warmth it affords. They have usually either one or two young ones at a birth, which are at first nearly naked, and are carried about, hanging close to and almost concealed by the hair of the mother s FIG. 4. Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur cotta}. From life. belly. After a while they change their position and mount upon the mother s back, where they are carried about until they are able to climb and leap by themselves. Though no member of the Indrisinse has as yet lived long enough in captivity to be brought alive to Europe, the lemurs are commonly seen in menageries, and often breed in England. They present a great tendency to variation in their colouring, in consequence of which many nominal species have been made. The most distinct, and at the same time most beautiful, is the ring-tailed lemur (L. catta, Linn., fig. 4), of a delicate grey colour, and with a long tail marked with alternating rings of black and white. This is said by Mr G. A. Shaw (Proc. ZooL Soc., 1879, p. 132) to be an exception to all the other lemurs in not being arboreal, but living chiefly among rocks and bushes. Pollen, however, says that it inhabits the forests of the south-west parts of Madagascar, living, like its congeners, in considerable troups, and not differing from them in its habits. He adds that it is extremely gentle, and active and graceful in its movements, and utters at intervals a little plaintive cry like that of a domestic cat. All the others have the tail of uniform colour. The largest species is L. variiis, Geoff., the ruffed lemur, sometimes black and white, and sometimes reddish- brown, the variation apparently not depending on sex or age, but on the individual. In L. macaco the male is black and the female red. L. mongoz, L. collaris, and L. albifrons are other well-known species. 2. Hapalemur, Is. Geoff. Upper incisors very small, subequal, separated widely in the middle line. Those of each side in contact with each other and with the canine, the posterior one being placed on the inside, and not in front of the latter. Muzzle very short and truncated. Mammae four. There is apparently but one species, H. griseus, smaller than any of the true lemurs, of a dark grey colour, with round face and short ears. It is quite nocturnal, and lives chiefly among bamboos, subsisting on the young shoots. A second species has been named H. simics, but it is doubtful if it is not only a variety. 3. Lepilcmur, Is. Geoff. ; Lcpidolcmur and Myxoccbus, Peters. Upper incisors absent or only two in number and very small. Muzzle more elongated than in the last. No distinct os centrale in the carpus. L. mustclinus is the best known species. It has, at all events when adult, no upper incisors. It is rare, and like Hapahmur nocturnal in its habits. A second closely allied species, but with better developed premaxillse, containing a pair of small styliform incisors, has been described by Peters under the name of Myxoccbus caniccps (Monatsb. Berlin. Akad., 1874, p. 690). III. Subfamily Galaginae. Dentition as in Lcmnrime, from which they are distinguished by the elongation of the tarsus, caused by a peculiar modification of the os calcis and the naviculare, the distal portion of the former and the whole of the latter having the form of nearly cylindrical rods placed side by side, while the other bones retain nearly their normal form and proportion. 1. Chiroijaleus, Geoff. Third upper premolar very much smaller than the first molar, and with only one external cusp. The ani mals included under this name appear to form a transition between the true lemurs and the galagos. The genus was originally estab lished by Geoffrey St Hilaire in 1812 for the reception of three animals only known at that time by drawings made in Madagascar by the traveller Commerson. Subsequent discoveries have brought to light several species that may be referred to it, including one or two which are sometimes considered as forming a genus apart under the name of Microccbus. They are all small, some being less than a rat in size, long-tailed, arid nocturnal in their habits. One of the largest, C. furcifcr, is of a reddish-grey colour, and is distinguished by a dark median stripe on its back which divides on the top of the head into two branches, one of which passes forwards above each eye. The most interesting peculiarity of these animals, a knowledge of which we owe to M. Grandidier, is that certain species (C. samati, C. gliroidcs, C. milii, &c. ) during the dry season coil themselves up in holes of trees, and pass into a state of torpidity, like that of the hibernating animals in the winter of northern climates. Before this takes place, an immense deposit of fat accu mulates upon certain parts of the body, especially upon the basal portion of the tail, which has then dimensions corresponding to that of the well known fat-tailed sheep of the Cape, but which by the time they emerge from their torpor has acquired its normal pro portions. The smallest species, to which many names have been given (C. pusillus, rvfus, smithii, &c.), lives among the small branches on the tops of the highest trees, feeding on fruit and insects, and making nests which resemble those of birds. 2. Galago, Geoff. =0tolicnus, Illiger. Third upper premolar with two large external cusps, and nearly equalling the first molar in size. Os calcis about one-third the length of the tibia, and the navi culare much longer than the cuboid. Vertebrae : C7, D13, L6, S3, C22-26. Tail long, and generally bushy. Ears large, rounded, naked, and capable of being folded at the will of the animal. Mamma?, four, two pectoral and two inguinal. The galagos differ from all the lemuroids previously mentioned, inasmuch as they are all inhabitants, not of Madagascar, but of tl-:e African continent, being widely distributed in the wooded districts from Senegambia in the west to Abyssinia in the east, and as far south as Natal. They pass the day in sleep, but are very active at night, feeding on fruit, insects, and small birds. &quot;When they descend to the ground they sit upright, and move about by jump ing with their hind legs, like jerboas and kangaroos. They are pretty little animals, varying in size from that of a small cat to less than a rat, with large eyes and ears, soft woolly fur, and long tails. There are several species, of which G. crassicaudatus, from Mozambique, is the largest. A similar species, or perhaps variety, from Angola is G. montieri. G. garnetti, allcni, maholi, dcmidoffi, and scncgalcnsis are other recognized species. The last-mentioned