| ecology and conservation of the crowned lemur, lemur coronatus, at ankarana, n. madagascar. with notes on sanford's lemur, other sympatrics and subfossil lemurs. | forests of ankarana limestone massif in northern madagascar support one of the largest and least disturbed populations of crowned lemurs, lemur coronatus. this paper reports a preliminary study of the ecology of this species in the ankarana special reserve conducted at the end of the dry season in 1986, with additional information collected a year later. crowned lemurs occur in very high densities in the semi-deciduous canopy forest and this probably represents a dry season refuge for the specie ... | 1989 | 2807091 |
| subfossil indri indri from the ankarana massif of northern madagascar. | subfossil specimens of indri indri have been recovered recently from the ankarana massif cave system in the far north of madagascar. taken together with material from the central highland site of ampasambazimba, the range of this species appears to have once included much of the northern half of the island and to have extended north and west beyond the eastern rainforest (not unlike hapalemur simus). it is probable that forest corridors connected the subfossil localities to the current range at ... | 1995 | 7485433 |
| kinetics of leaping primates: influence of substrate orientation and compliance. | our current knowledge about the forces leapers generate and absorb is very limited and based exclusively on rigid force platform measurements. in their natural environments, however, leapers take off and land on branches and tree trunks, and these may be compliant. we evaluated the influence of substrate properties on leaping kinetics in prosimian leapers by using a combined field and laboratory approach. tree sway and the timing of takeoffs relative to the movements of trees were documented for ... | 1995 | 7604894 |
| relative growth of the limbs and trunk in sifakas: heterochronic, ecological, and functional considerations. | limb, trunk, and body weight measurements were obtained for growth series of milne-edwards's diademed sifaka, propithecus diadema edwardsi, and the golden-crowned sifaka, propithecus tattersalli. similar measures were obtained also for primarily adults of two subspecies of the western sifaka: propithecus verreauxi coquereli, coquerel's sifaka, and propithecus verreauxi verreauxi, verreaux's sifaka. ontogenetic series for the larger-bodied p. d. edwardsi and the smaller-bodied p. tattersalli were ... | 1993 | 8296878 |
| predation on milne-edward's sifaka (propithecus diadema edwardsi) by the fossa (cryptoprocta ferox) in the rain forest of southeastern madagascar. | | 1997 | 9170643 |
| seed handling by three prosimian primates in southeastern madagascar: implications for seed dispersal. | in this paper, we studied three species of prosimian primate (propithecus diadema edwardsi, eulemur fulvus rufus, and eulemur rubriventer) from june-july 1995 at the ranomafana national park to answer three questions: 1) how they handle and process seeds, 2) how the physical properties of seeds influence seed handling and seed fate, and 3) whether handling and processing patterns influence seed dispersal. seeds from five plant species were collected from feces and examined for external damage (p ... | 1998 | 9573443 |
| patterns of female dominance in propithecus diadema edwardsi of ranomafana national park, madagascar. | many lemur species are characterized by some form of female dominance, ranging from female feeding priority to complete female dominance, although this is a rare trait in primates and other mammals. the status of the milne-edwards' sifaka (propithecus diadema edwardsi), a diurnal lemur, is ambiguous. some short-term studies have found little or no aggression. the aim of the current, long-term study was to quantify the intersexual-dominance patterns of this sifaka. the distribution, outcome, and ... | 2003 | 14669269 |
| dietary patterns in perrier's sifakas (propithecus diadema perrieri): a preliminary study. | some lemur species range into only one habitat type, whereas others range into a variety of habitats. because plant community structure can differ between habitats, dietary patterns may vary for conspecific groups of primates that range into more than one type of habitat. the goal of our study was to determine how habitat variation influences dietary patterns in perrier's sifakas (propithecus diadema perrieri) that range into both dry and riparian forests in northern madagascar. we collected 542 ... | 2004 | 14983469 |
| demography, life history, and social structure in propithecus diadema edwardsi from 1986-2000 in ranomafana national park, madagascar. | prosimian lemurs differ fundamentally from anthropoid primates in many traits related to social structure. by exploring the demography of milne-edwards' sifakas (propithecus diadema edwardsi), and comparing it to other well-studied primates, we explore the effect of demographic and life-history factors on social structure. specifically, we compare lemur survivorship and fertility patterns to two published composite models: one created for new world and another created for old world monkeys. usin ... | 2004 | 15293332 |
| ecogeographic size variations in sifakas: a test of the resource seasonality and resource quality hypotheses. | ecogeographic size variations have been documented in some but not all sifakas. few morphometric or body weight data have been available for two critically endangered subspecies of diademed sifakas: perrier's sifakas (propithecus diadema perrieri) and silky sifakas (propithecus diadema candidus). the objectives of our study were to determine size variations in sifakas and if these variations are related to resource quality and/or resource seasonality. p. d. perrieri and p. d. candidus were captu ... | 2005 | 15386235 |
| edge effects and their influence on lemur density and distribution in southeast madagascar. | edge effects are caused by the penetration of abiotic and biotic conditions from the matrix into forest interiors. although edge effects influence the biogeography of many tropical organisms, they have not been studied directly in primates. edge effects are particularly relevant to lemurs due to the loss of 80-90% of forests in madagascar. in this study, data are presented on how biotic edge effects influenced the distribution and density of lemurs in the vohibola iii classified forest in southe ... | 2006 | 16323178 |
| lemur responses to edge effects in the vohibola iii classified forest, madagascar. | forest edges are dynamic zones characterized by the penetration (to varying depths and intensities) of conditions from the surrounding environment (matrix) into the forest interior. although edge effects influence many tropical organisms, they have not been studied directly in primates. edge effects are particularly relevant to lemurs because of the highly fragmented forest landscapes found in madagascar. in this study, data are presented regarding how the densities of six lemur species (avahi l ... | 2006 | 16477598 |
| living in forest fragments reduces group cohesion in diademed sifakas (propithecus diadema) in eastern madagascar by reducing food patch size. | forest fragmentation is thought to threaten primate populations, yet the mechanisms by which this occurs remain largely unknown. however, fragmentation is known to cause dietary shifts in several primate species, and links between food resource distribution and within-group spatial dynamics are well documented. thus, fragmentation has the potential to indirectly affect spatial dynamics, and these changes may present additional stresses to fragmented populations. i present the results from a 12-m ... | 2007 | 17146794 |
| diademed sifakas (propithecus diadema) use olfaction to forage for the inflorescences of subterranean parasitic plants (balanophoraceae: langsdorffia sp., and cytinaceae: cytinus sp.). | primates usually locate food resources using visual cues and memory, yet the potential for olfactory-guided (or olfactory-assisted) food location remains relatively unexplored. here we report observations of wild propithecus diadema that strongly suggest that olfaction is used to locate the inflorescences of two subterranean parasitic plant species (langsdorffia sp. and cytinus sp.). these valued but seasonal food resources are found obscured in leaf litter, and sifakas spend considerable time o ... | 2007 | 17154383 |
| comparing chromosomal and mitochondrial phylogenies of the indriidae (primates, lemuriformes). | the malagasy primate family indriidae comprises three genera with up to 19 species. cytogenetic and molecular phylogenies of the indriidae have been performed with special attention to the genus propithecus. comparative r-banding and fish with human paints were applied to karyotypes of representatives of all three genera and confirmed most of the earlier r-banding results. however, additional chromosomal rearrangements were detected. a reticulated and a cladistic phylogeny, the latter including ... | 2011 | 21336668 |
| gastrointestinal parasites of captive and free-living lemurs and domestic carnivores in eastern madagascar. | fecal samples from captive and free-living lemurs at ivoloina zoological park (izp) and domestic carnivores from six villages surrounding izp were evaluated between july and august 2012. free-living lemurs from betampona natural reserve (bnr), a relatively pristine rainforest fragment 40 km away, were also evaluated in november 2013. all 33 dogs sampled (100%) and 16 of 22 cats sampled (72.7%) were parasitized, predominantly with nematodes (strongyles, ascarids, and spirurids) as well as cestode ... | 2016 | 27010275 |
| cranial vault thickness in primates: homo erectus does not have uniquely thick vault bones. | extremely thick cranial vaults have been noted as a diagnostic characteristic of homo erectus since the first fossil of the species was identified, but relatively little work has been done on elucidating its etiology or variation across fossils, living humans, or extant non-human primates. cranial vault thickness (cvt) is not a monolithic trait, and the responsiveness of its layers to environmental stimuli is unknown. we obtained measurements of cranial vault thickness in fossil hominins from th ... | 2016 | 26767964 |
| primate vaginal microbiomes exhibit species specificity without universal lactobacillus dominance. | bacterial communities colonizing the reproductive tracts of primates (including humans) impact the health, survival and fitness of the host, and thereby the evolution of the host species. despite their importance, we currently have a poor understanding of primate microbiomes. the composition and structure of microbial communities vary considerably depending on the host and environmental factors. we conducted comparative analyses of the primate vaginal microbiome using pyrosequencing of the 16s r ... | 2014 | 25036926 |
| phylogenetic history of the sifakas ( propithecus: lemuriformes) derived from cytogenetic studies. | the r-banded karyotypes of the different subspecies of propithecus diadema and p. verreauxi are compared to each other and to that of p. tattersalli, as well as those previously reported of indri indri and avahi laniger. this comparison shows that the different subspecies of p. verreauxi possess the same karyotype and that, among p. diadema, p. d. diadema and p. d. perrieri share the same karyotype differing from that of p. d. edwardsi by one robertsonian translocation. the karyotype of p. tatte ... | 2004 | 15252241 |
| [cranial and mandibular morphology of the indrinae. contribution of procrustes methods and fourier analysis]. | although it is universally accepted that the indridae family is monophyletic, there is no such unanimity about how the extant species of the indrinae sub-family are related. cranium and mandible disparity among indri indri, propithecus diadema, propithecus verreauxi and avahi laniger is analysed by geometrical morphometric methods and interpreted in adaptive terms. we compare results obtained by two techniques: procrustes superimpositions for skulls and elliptical fourier analysis for jawbones. ... | 2000 | 10923214 |
| pair-bonding, female aggression and the evolution of lemur societies. | lemur societies have been described as convergent with those of anthropoids, including papio-like female-bonded multi-male groups. recent research, however, shows at least 5 pair-bonded species among the lemuridae and indriidae. three more, eulemur mongoz, eulemur fulvus and varecia variegata, have societies combining aspects of pairing with aspects of troop life. the best-known female-bonded societies, those of lemur catta, propithecus diadema edwardsi and propithecus verreauxi, may be assembla ... | 1998 | 9595685 |
| lemuralges propithecus sp. n. (acariformes: psoroptidae), an ectoparasite of the diademed sifaka propithecus diadema (primates: indriidae). | a new species of the genus lemuralges fain, 1963 (acariformes: psoroptidae: makialginae) is described from the malagasy lemur propithecus diadema (bennett) (primates: indriidae) based on all postembryonic instars. this new species differs from the only known species in this genus, lemuralges intermedius fain, 1963, by the following features: both sexes of l. propithecus sp. n. show a pair of medioventral projections of the subcapitulum (vs without projections in l. intermedius) and the propodono ... | 2015 | 25960555 |
| blood transcriptomes reveal novel parasitic zoonoses circulating in madagascar's lemurs. | zoonotic diseases are a looming threat to global populations, and nearly 75% of emerging infectious diseases can spread among wildlife, domestic animals and humans. a 'one world, one health' perspective offers us an ideal framework for understanding and potentially mitigating the spread of zoonoses, and the island of madagascar serves as a natural laboratory for conducting these studies. rapid habitat degradation and climate change on the island are contributing to more frequent contact among hu ... | 2016 | 26814226 |
| functional morphology of indrid lumbar vertebrae. | indrids are primarily vertical clingers and leapers but also engage to various extents in climbing, suspensory postures, bimanual movement, bipedal hopping, and quadrupedalism. it has been demonstrated that these behaviors are well reflected in the appendicular anatomy of these primates, while indrid vertebral anatomy has received relatively little attention. in this morphometric study, biomechanically relevant aspects of the lumbar vertebrae of indri indri, propithecus diadema, and propithecus ... | 1995 | 8572156 |
| a massively parallel strategy for str marker development, capture, and genotyping. | short tandem repeat (str) variants are highly polymorphic markers that facilitate powerful population genetic analyses. strs are especially valuable in conservation and ecological genetic research, yielding detailed information on population structure and short-term demographic fluctuations. massively parallel sequencing has not previously been leveraged for scalable, efficient str recovery. here, we present a pipeline for developing str markers directly from high-throughput shotgun sequencing d ... | 2017 | 28666376 |
| minerals in the foods and diet of diademed sifakas: are they nutritional challenges? | minerals, though needed in small quantities, are essential to metabolic processes, and deficiencies can seriously threaten health, reproduction and survival. despite this, few studies have measured mineral composition of wild primate foods and fewer have quantified mineral intake. here we measured the concentration of nine minerals in 75 foods of diademed sifakas (propithecus diadema; five groups) in habitats with varying levels of disturbance at tsinjoarivo and estimated daily intakes using foc ... | 2017 | 28095599 |
| ectoparasites of propithecus diadema (primates: indriidae) with notes on unusual attachment site selection by haemaphysalis lemuris (parasitiformes: ixodidae). | an examination of ectoparasite loads in two populations of wild diademed sifakas, propithecus diadema bennett, yielded seven species-four mite species, a louse, a hippoboscid fly, and a leech. prevalence of the tick haemaphysalis lemuris hoogstraal, the mites liponyssella madagascariensis (hirst) and lemuralges propithecus bochkov et al., and the louse trichophilopterus babakotophilus stobbe was quite high, at least 20%. h. lemuris was the most common ectoparasite in one population, while comple ... | 2015 | 26334804 |
| the nutritional geometry of resource scarcity: effects of lean seasons and habitat disturbance on nutrient intakes and balancing in wild sifakas. | animals experience spatial and temporal variation in food and nutrient supply, which may cause deviations from optimal nutrient intakes in both absolute amounts (meeting nutrient requirements) and proportions (nutrient balancing). recent research has used the geometric framework for nutrition to obtain an improved understanding of how animals respond to these nutritional constraints, among them free-ranging primates including spider monkeys and gorillas. we used this framework to examine macronu ... | 2015 | 26061401 |
| nutritional correlates of the "lean season": effects of seasonality and frugivory on the nutritional ecology of diademed sifakas. | primate field studies often identify "lean seasons," when preferred foods are scarce, and lower-quality, abundant foods (fallback foods) are consumed. here, we quantify the nutritional implications of these terms for two diademed sifaka groups (propithecus diadema) in madagascar, using detailed feeding observations and chemical analyses of foods. in particular, we sought to understand 1) how macronutrient and energy intakes vary seasonally, including whether these intakes respond in similar or d ... | 2014 | 24318944 |
| variation in physiological health of diademed sifakas across intact and fragmented forest at tsinjoarivo, eastern madagascar. | as undisturbed habitat becomes increasingly rare, managers charged with ensuring the survival of endangered primate species must increasingly utilize disturbed and degraded habitats in species survival plans. yet we have an imperfect understanding of the true long-term viability of primate populations in disturbed habitat, and census data can be misleading because density is not necessarily correlated with habitat quality and population viability in predictable ways. here we present clinical lab ... | 2010 | 20872787 |
| virus discovery reveals frequent infection by diverse novel members of the flaviviridae in wild lemurs. | lemurs are highly endangered mammals inhabiting the forests of madagascar. in this study, we performed virus discovery on serum samples collected from 84 wild lemurs and identified viral sequence fragments from 4 novel viruses within the family flaviviridae, including members of the genera hepacivirus and pegivirus. the sifaka hepacivirus (sifhv, two genotypes) and pegivirus (sifpgv, two genotypes) were discovered in the diademed sifaka (propithecus diadema), while other pegiviral fragments were ... | 2019 | 30460488 |
| use of social network models to understand play partner choice strategies in three primate species. | although play is seen in many species, its evolutionary function is still largely unknown. several relevant, proposed hypotheses (such as the training for the unexpected, self-assessment, social skills, and dominance hierarchy hypotheses) make predictions about how animals should optimally choose their play partners based on their familiarity or other demographic variables. we used a social network approach to analyze focal sample data on brown capuchins (cebus apella), hamadryas baboons (papio ... | 2019 | 30600419 |
| chromosomal evolution in malagasy lemurs: x. chromosomal banding studies of propithecus diadema edwardsi and indri indri and phylogenic relationships between all the species of the indriidae. | the r-banded karyotypes of two indriidae, propithecus diadema and indri indri, are described and compared with each other and with those of the other species of this family, previously reported, avahi laniger and propithecus verreauxi. these comparisons show that 30 chromosomal rearrangements, including 21 robertsonian translocations and eight pericentric inversions, differentiate these karyotypes. a phylogenic diagram is proposed, showing the early separation of avahi and the relatively late di ... | 1988 | 31968877 |
| exploring social dominance in wild diademed sifakas (propithecus diadema): females are dominant, but it is subtle and the benefits are not clear. | rarely observed in mammals, female dominance is documented in several of madagascar's lemurs. although dominance affects many aspects of primates' lives, studies have largely focused on dyadic agonistic interactions to characterise relationships. we explored the power structure of three diademed sifaka groups (propithecus diadema) at tsinjoarivo during the lean season (july-august, 325 h) using social behaviours, group leadership, displacements and feeding outcomes. two groups had a hierarchy do ... | 2020 | 31694022 |
| morphometric signals of population decline in diademed sifakas occupying degraded rainforest habitat in madagascar. | anthropogenic habitat change can have varied impacts on primates, including both negative and positive outcomes. even when behavioural shifts are seen, they may reflect decreased health, or simply behavioural flexibility; understanding this distinction is important for conservation efforts. this study examines habitat-related variation in adult and immature morphometrics among diademed sifakas (propithecus diadema). we collected morphometric data from sifakas at tsinjoarivo, madagascar (19 years ... | 2019 | 31217457 |
| faecal glucocorticoid metabolite profiles in diademed sifakas increase during seasonal fruit scarcity with interactive effects of age/sex class and habitat degradation. | glucocorticoids are metabolic byproducts of animals' physiological responses to ecological or social challenges and are thought to represent an adaptive response allowing beneficial responses to short-term challenges. glucocorticoid metabolites (gcs) can be assayed non-invasively through faeces and therefore can be a useful tool to gauge the health of populations experiencing natural and/or anthropogenic stressors. however, the response of gcs to anthropogenic stressors varies, with both higher ... | 2019 | 30746150 |