The light was beginning to fade. The trail weaved around small trees, through several dips, and into a grassy patch. This was our first afternoon in the wilds of Madagascar. That morning, we’d driven from Antananarivo into the eastern mountains. The forest smelled dry, and leaves crunched with each footstep, even though this was a tropical rainforest. My senses were keen for anything we might find in Andasibe National Park. This was our first evening in the woods of Madagascar as we started our six-week adventure.
A sudden movement caught our attention, prompting us to turn and gaze back into the trees. There, twenty feet up, six Common Brown Lemurs (Eulemur fulvus) were making their way towards us, navigating the delicate branches with remarkable agility as if the slender twigs were broad platforms in the canopy. I stood transfixed, for these were our first lemur sightings.
The one on the lower trunk must have only been ten feet from me. It looked cuddly, like a teddy bear. How could a scientist like me think like that? I blinked a few times to chase those thoughts out of my head, but when I looked back, it still looked like something to sit on a made bed. We humans are inherently attracted to certain things. A round face, nose similar to ours, soft, large eyes. We all ogle over a tiny baby, sucked in by their appearance. Had this creature overwhelmed my scientific training?
I glanced at my camera to shake that thought. Four common brown lemurs seemed to be staring right at me as if to say, “Ha, we got you.” One jumped from a high branch to another at my eye level. There, it seemed to glare at me as if trying to decide what I was and then moved across several trees before disappearing back into the forest with its troop.
They weigh four to five pounds, with a long muzzle and tail, but were agile enough to navigate through the trees. This species primarily feeds on fruit and leaves. It is crucial in certain regions as the most critical seed disperser. For some plants with relatively large seeds, this lemur may now be the only species to disperse those seeds, making its survival a vital conservation issue for maintaining ecosystems.
I later sent a photograph of the close one to my family. The reply was, “I want one.” These mammals had captured all our hearts.
Here is the link to the portfolio gallery from our Madagascar trip.
https://www.thomasbancroft.com/index/G0000E6smmgcwmKI/I0000dn601bH0rVs
#Madagascar #Lemur #AndasibeNationalPark #Madagascarwildlife #Madagascarphotography #Madagascarlemurs #lemurs
WONDERFUL!
Thanks so much!