Ring-tailed Lemur
Getting ready to jump . . . should I, shouldn't I???The Ring-tailed Lemur (Lemur catta) is a primate found solely on the African Island of Madagascar and some tiny neighboring islands. Because of its geographic isolation, Madagascar is home to many amazing animals found nowhere else on Earth. Spending slightly more time in the trees then on the ground, the Ring-tailed Lemur is the only primate in Madagascar to make extensive use of the land for foraging. Whether it's fruits, leaves, or flowers, the Lemur is happy to be out daily looking for food with a troop of as many as 30 others. On the ground, these lemurs walk on all fours, their hind-ends perched high because their arms are so short! Lemurs rarely use their hands and feet to peel, pick, or prepare food. They use them to move nimbly through the trees and to pull branches close. Then they bite off what they want to eat! Lemurs cannot grip with their tails as some of their primate cousins do. Ring-tailed lemurs also spend a lot of time on the ground, which is unusual among lemur species. They are unmistakable because of their long, vividly striped, black-and-white tail and are familiar residents of many zoos.
Status: Endangered --> Status information found at The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. [NOTE: The designation changed from Near Threatened in 2008 to Endangered in 2014.] More information can be found at National Geographic.