Category Archives: lemurs

Mapping trees can help count endangered lemurs

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Mapping trees can help count endangered lemurs. Duke Today, August 30, 2018. Putting a figure on the number of endangered lemurs left in the wild isn’t easy, but Duke University researchers say one clue might help: the plants they rely on for food. Bamboo lemur populations in their native Madagascar may have shrunk by half over the last two decades; red-fronted brown lemurs by as much as 85 percent. But numbers for other lemur species may not be as low as feared, new models suggest.

Lemurs can smell weakness in each other

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Lemurs can smell weakness in each other. Duke Today, June 28, 2018. Some people watch the competition carefully for the slightest signs of weakness. Lemurs, on the other hand, just give them a sniff. These primates from Madagascar can tell that a fellow lemur is weaker just by the natural scents they leave behind, finds a study on ring-tailed lemurs led by Duke University researchers. The study reveals that getting hurt dampens a lemur’s natural aroma, and that males act more aggressively toward scents that smell “off.” Picked up by National Geographic.

Mouse lemurs, decoded

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Mouse lemurs, decoded. 1,100 Words on Duke Research, April 12, 2018. Scientists have published a new and improved genome sequence for mouse lemurs, tiny primates that sometimes develop Alzheimer’s-like symptoms as they age, just like humans.

Humans don’t use as much brainpower as we like to think

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Humans don’t use as much brainpower as we like to think. Duke Today, Oct. 31, 2017. For years, scientists assumed that humans devote a larger share of calories to their brains than other animals. Although the human brain makes up only 2 percent of body weight, it consumes more than 25 percent of the body’s energy budget. But a comparison of the relative brain costs of 22 species found that other animals have hungry brains too. Picked up by the Daily Mail, IFLScience, Futurity and United Press International.

Lemur research gets a gut check

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Lemur research gets a gut check. Duke Research blog, June 19, 2017. Researchers have tracked changes in lemur gut microbiomes during and after infection with a widespread intestinal parasite called Cryptosporidium. The diarrheal illness caused by the parasite wipes out much of the animals’ gut flora, the researchers found, but fecal transplants can help them recover. The team says their findings could help develop probiotic treatments for captive primates, as well as humans battling similar diarrheal diseases.

Lemur DNA paints a picture of Madagascar’s forested past

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Lemur DNA paints a picture of Madagascar’s forested past. Duke Today, July 18, 2016. While there’s no question that human activities such as logging and slash-and-burn agriculture have dramatically altered Madagascar’s forests since the first settlers arrived about 2000 years ago, just how much of the island was forested before people got there remains a matter of debate. Now, a DNA study of tree-dwelling mouse lemurs suggests that humans did not arrive to find the island as blanketed by forests as frequently assumed. Picked up by the Daily Mail, the Christian Science Monitor and the Washington Post.

Lemurs mix smelly secretions to make richer, longer-lasting scents

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Lemurs mix smelly secretions to make richer, longer-lasting scents. Duke Today, April 19, 2016. Humans aren’t alone in their ability to mix perfumes and colognes. Lemurs, too, get more out of their smelly secretions by combining fragrances from different scent glands to create richer, longer-lasting scents, finds a study led by Duke University. Picked up by Mental Floss, Scientific American, Scientific American’s 60-Second Science, and the Daily Mail.

Why testing lemur color vision is harder than it looks

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Why testing lemur color vision is harder than it looks. Duke Research Blog, March 18, 2016. Elphaba the aye-aye is not an early riser. A nocturnal primate with oversized ears, bulging eyes and long, bony fingers, she looks like the bushy-tailed love child of a bat and an opossum. Elphaba is one of 14 aye-ayes at the Duke Lemur Center in Durham, North Carolina, where researchers have been trying to figure out if these rare lemurs can tell certain colors apart, particularly at night when aye-ayes are most active. But as their experiments show, testing an aye-aye’s eyesight is easier said than done.

New way to detect human-animal diseases tested in lemurs

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New way to detect human-animal diseases tested in lemurs. Duke Today, Jan. 27, 2016. RNA sequencing is uncovering emerging diseases in wildlife that other diagnostic tests cannot detect. Researchers used a technique called transcriptome sequencing to screen for blood-borne diseases in Madagascar’s lemurs, distant primate cousins to humans. The animals were found to be carrying several previously unknown parasites similar to those that cause Lyme disease in humans. The approach could pave the way for earlier, more accurate detection of disease outbreaks that move between animals and people.

Male hormones help lemur females rule

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Male hormones help lemur females rule. Duke Today, May 12, 2015. Lemur girls behave more like the guys, thanks to a little testosterone, finds a new study. When it comes to conventional gender roles, lemurs — distant primate cousins of ours — buck the trend. Duke University researchers say females have significantly lower testosterone levels than the males across the board. But when they compared six lemur species, they found that females of species where females dominate have higher testosterone than females of more egalitarian species. Picked up by the Charlotte Observer.

Clues to aging from long-lived lemurs

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Clues to aging from long-lived lemurs. Duke Today, March 30, 2015. Researchers combed through more than 50 years of medical records on hundreds of lemurs at the Duke Lemur Center for clues to their longevity. They found that how long these primates live and how fast they age correlates with the amount of time they spend in a state of suspended animation known as torpor. The research may eventually help scientists identify “anti-aging” genes in humans. Picked up by Discovery News, BBC Radio, NPR affiliate WUNC and the News & Observer.

Models predict where lemurs will go as climate warms

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Models predict where lemurs will go as climate warms. Duke Today, Feb. 18, 2015. Climate change is likely to leave a lot of lemurs looking for new places to live on their island home of Madagascar. A Duke study predicts where lemurs are likely to seek refuge as temperatures rise between now and 2080. The researchers identified three areas on the island that will be particularly important for lemurs in the future, as well as key corridors that will allow lemurs to reach these areas from their current spots. Picked up by Scientific American, Science Magazine, Science News and BBC.

 

DNA sheds light on why largest lemurs disappeared

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DNA sheds light on why largest lemurs disappeared. Duke Today, December 16, 2014. DNA from giant lemurs that lived thousands of years ago in Madagascar may help explain why the animals went extinct, and what makes some lemurs more at risk today. Scientists have little doubt that humans played a role in the giant lemurs’ demise. By comparing the species that died out to those that survived, scientists hope to better predict which lemurs are most in need of protection in the future. Picked up by The Herald-Sun.

Nearly 50 years of lemur data now available online

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Nearly 50 years of lemur data now available online. Duke Lemur Center, July 24, 2014. A 48-year archive of life history data for the world’s largest and most diverse collection of endangered primates is now digital and available online. The Duke Lemur Center database allows visitors to view and download data for more than 3600 animals representing 27 species of lemurs, lorises and galagos — distant primate cousins who predate monkeys and apes — with more data to be uploaded in the future. Picked up by io9 and BBC News.

Matching gifts mean new set of wheels for SAVA Conservation in Madagascar

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Matching gifts mean new set of wheels for SAVA Conservation in Madagascar. Duke Lemur Center, June 23, 2014. Lemur researcher Erik Patel will be the first to tell you that driving in Madagascar is not for the faint of heart. Paved roads are rare. Street lights are nonexistent. Torrential rains turn dirt roads to solid mud for many months of the year. Bridges wash out, and just as quickly as they are repaired, seasonal cyclones wipe them out again. A generous matching gift won’t make the road conditions in Madagascar any less rugged, but it will allow members of Duke’s SAVA Conversation initiative to get around and manage a growing number of projects more safely, cost-effectively, and with fewer headaches than before.

Genome sequences show how lemurs fight infection

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Genome sequences show how lemurs fight infection. Duke Today, May 30, 2014. Coquerel’s sifakas are the only lemur species out of 17 at the Duke Lemur Center to fall prey to Cryptosporidium, a waterborne illness that causes weakness and diarrhea. Young sifakas are more likely to get sick, but if researchers can harness next-generation sequencing technology to figure out how older animals manage to fight the infection, they might be able to develop vaccines that provide infants the same protection. Picked up by National Geographic.