Ruffed Lemur - Varecia variegata

Ruffed Lemur - Varecia variegata (Kerr, 1792).

IUCN STATUS CATEGORY Endangered

HABITAT Humid Rain forest (Wolfheim, 1983).

GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD Eastern rain forests of Madagascar.

CURRENT POPULATION There are no population numbers, although the numbers of the species are declining.

SIZE Head and body length 51 to 60cm. Tail length 56 to 65cm.

WEIGHT Adult weight 3.2 to 4.5kg. Females tend to be heavier than males.

AVERAGE LIFE EXPECTANCY A captive specimen lived for 19 years (Nowak, 1991).

NORMAL DIET Mostly fruit, supplemented with small amounts of nectar, seeds and leaves.

NORMAL LIFESTYLE Ruffed Lemurs are found in territorial groups of between two and five individuals.

PREVIOUS GEOGRAPHICAL SPREAD Probably had a wider distribution prior to the deforestation of much of eastern Madagascar.

REASONS FOR DECLINE Mostly habitat loss due to agricultural expansion, although hunting and trapping has contributed to the decline. Ruffed Lemurs are commonly kept as pets in Madagascar. The collection of Ruffed Lemurs for export is suspected to have led to decline of this species in some areas (Wolfheim, 1983).

CURRENT THREATS Habitat loss and hunting remain the key threats to this species.

CONSERVATION PROJECTS All lemurs in Madagascar are protected by national legislation, although it is difficult to enforce. The species is found in the following protected areas: Verezanantsoro, Mantady and Ranomafana National Parks, the Andringitra, Betampona and Zahamena Nature Reserves and in the Ambatovaky, Nosy Mangabe and Analamazaotra Special Reserves (Mittermeier, 1992). There are plans to create a National Park upon the Masoala Peninsula (Jenkins, M. pers comm.).

SPECIAL FEATURES Two very distinct subspecies of this lemur occur: Varecia variegata variegata the Black and White Ruffed Lemur, and V. variegata rubra the Red-ruffed Lemur. The Red-ruffed Lemur is confined to the Masoala Peninsula above the Antanambalana River. The Black Ruffed Lemur is distributed within suitable habitat from the Antanambalana River, along the east coast of Madagascar, to the Mananara River. The Red-ruffed Lemur does not occur in any protected areas (Mittermeier, 1992); however the establishment of a National Park upon the Masoala Peninsula will give some security to the conservation of this subspecies.

REFERENCES

Harcourt, C. & Thornback, J. 1990. Lemurs of Madagascar and the Comoros. The IUCN Red Data Book. IUCN, Gland. 158-167.

Mittermeier, R.A., Konstant, W.R., Nicholl, M.E. & Langrand, O. (eds). 1992. Lemurs of Madagascar: An action plan for their conservation 1993-1999. IUCN, Gland. 58pp.

Nowak, R.M. 1991. Walker's Mammals of the World. 5th ed. Vol.1. John Hopkins University Press, London 431-433.

Wolfheim, J.H. 1983. Primates of the World, Distribution, Abundance, and Conservation. University of Washington Press: London. 597-598.

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