Ring tailed lemur

Ring tailed lemur questions and answers

Where do ring tailed lemurs live?
Ring tailed lemurs come from Madagascar, the island off the East Coast of Africa. They live in the rainforest and spend most of their time on the forest floor, although they do climb but tend to spend more time in the mid canopy than the very top of the trees like ruffed lemurs.

What do ring tailed lemurs eat?  
Ring tailed lemurs mostly eat fruit and leaves. They really like the leaves of the tamarind tree. When it’s available, half of what they eat will be tamarind leaves. The food they eat is different to other lemurs because of the amount of time they spend on the ground. They will eat bark, earth, small insects and spider webs.

What is a group of ring tailed lemurs called?
A group of ring tailed lemurs is often known as a ‘troop’, although we think a ring of ring tails would be better.

What noise do ring tailed lemurs make?
Ring tailed lemurs make all kinds of noises from wails to howls, from purrs to chirps.

How many types of lemurs are there?
Nearly 100! But all of them come from Madagascar. The smallest is the pygmy mouse lemur which weighs just one ounce.

Are ring-tailed lemurs monkeys?
It’s an easy mistake to think lemurs are monkeys. They have many things in common. Both belong to the primate order which is made up of ‘monkeys’, ‘prosimians’ and ‘apes’. Lemurs are prosimians which literally means ‘before monkeys’.

How many babies does a ring tailed lemur have?  
Ring tailed lemurs usually have just one baby at a time, although they can have twins. Mothers carry their babies on their fronts for the first couple of weeks and then on their backs when the babies are a bit stronger.