Tuesday 30 August 2011 Gray-backed Sportive Lemur

The Gray-backed Sportive Lemur (Lepilemur dorsalis) resides in the country of Madagascar. It a gray with white black in color with a yellowish color belly. This lemur is not very big weighing roughly 1 to 2.5 lbs and their tail is approximately 9.8 to 12 inches (24.8cm - 30.4cm) long. They are able to climb and hang from trees either by their arms or their tails which they curl around a branch like a knot.

'Lemur' means ghost or spirit in latin, and is very appropriate due to their spooky look with their big eyes and little ears. Lemurs reside only in Madagascar and no other countries and have a very unique and distinctive look.

Almost ninety percent of the rainforest has been destroyed by loggers, endangering the gray-backed sportive lemur's existence as well as all the species of lemurs. Some lemurs are killed by superstitious people who are frightened by their eerie look. Sometimes this species is hunted for food when there is nothing else to eat.

Males live alone in solitude and visit one or more females at night during mating season. Each female will give birth to only one offspring. Once the offspring is born, usually somewhere between September and November, the mother will leave the child on a branch tucked away while they rummage for food. The mother will call to the child sounding like a kiss and the child will make the same sound back so the mother is assured of its safety.

The gray-backed sportive lemur is primarily a leaf-eating species, but will eat fruit and bark to supplement the diet. They possess long tails and binocular vision to focus in on their territory and finding food. The lemur is a nocturnal animal and at night swings vertically from tree limb to tree limb leaping onto branches. The lemur re-ingests its feces which helps to break down the fiber in the leaves they eat. The gray-backed sportive lemur is a very territorial animal.

Picture of the Gray-backed Sportive Lemur by dalbera, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic
license. You can help spreading the word about this animal by liking it on facebook

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Monday 29 August 2011 Tamarisk gerbil - Multi-colored Rodent

The Tamarisk gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) is also known as Mongolian or Tamarisk Jird and also called 'sand rat'. These small burrowing desert rodents have long hind legs used for leaping and running away from predators. They were named by Milne-Edwards.

Tamarisk gerbils normally have 15-18 centimeters (6-7 inches) head measurement, and their furry tails can extend up to 15 centimeters (6 inches) and are bushy towards the tip. These cute animals are preferred pets due to their gentle temperament. These social creatures vary in coat’s color from Yellow to Sandy or Gray or Dark Brown otherwise a classier Golden Agouti, Black, Argente, Lilac, Dove, Sapphire, Silver or Ivory Cream and others.

However, it was not until 1954 when they became popular pets but prior to that they roamed the deserts and steppes of different regions in the world. While these rodents are natural carriers of plagues and diseases, they are kept as pets and used as experimental animals. Like the Hamster, they are used for research or scientific testing.

These animals are abundant everywhere from the Mongolian desert, to the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan,Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and also in China. However, while considered rare in some areas they are not definitely considered endangered. However, the possibility of extinction may depend greatly on habitat degradation, water loss or droughts and least likely on human disturbance.

These animals do not usually grow in colonies but normally live in family groups. The female gerbil usually gives birth up to 3 times per year. They thrive on grassland, scrublands, desert, plantation and terrestrial areas. They survive on cold and dry winters and also on hot summers. Those family groups of gerbils who live in deserts may grow in extinction due to trampling of camels and other large animals.

These intelligent mammals live in btBefore(ga, s); })();