Lemur Interaction
Lemurs rely on their senses to help them to communicate. They have excellent hearing that helps them to identify the pitches with the sounds for communication. They track each other by sounds as well as by scents. They use scent glands to leave behind evidence of where they have been. This can prevent other Lemurs from entering their family home range.
The Lemur has a very long nose with wide nostrils that allow them to be able to smell from a long distance. This is a great way for young and mothers to find each other when they have been separated to look for food. It also helps them to identify dangers. That is very important since they aren’t very fast.
The Lemur uses their senses to adapt to the surroundings as well. When it comes to food sources there are different types of fruits offered at different points in the year. To fully benefit from this they have to move around to find food. Their sense of smell allows them to be able to find fruits that are readily available.
The Lemur hasn’t great eyesight. Studies show that Lemurs don’t see in color which means they don’t choose food based on how it looks. Rather then do so based on how it smells to them.
Lemurs are the most active at night and they have vision that allows them to be able to see well under such conditions. This is important so that they can find food and so that they can do their best to avoid predators. They really only have two main predators in the wild though. Humans account for most of their destruction.
Even though they can see well at night though most of them still really on their sense of smell more than anything else. They are highly tuned into the scents of all their family members. This makes it extremely easy for them to be able to identify where there are outsiders or threats around them.
They aren’t able to fight of predators like larger primates in most instances. Their sharper senses though could give them a better opportunity to make a quick exit.
Some experts believe that the scent glands of the dominant females for the families are stronger than the rest. Could this be why the rest of the family follows her lead? It is certainly something to consider. Such a theory hasn’t been proven though but there is enough information about it raise some serious questions that point in that very direction.
At the very least they aren’t finding much else to provide them information about what makes one of them as the leader and the rest to follow. In fact, the entire pecking order for the Lemur families continues to remain a mystery.
The combination of their senses including smell, sight, and hearing are also primary forms of communication for the Lemur. As a result they are able to maintain their very high social elements. They thrive on their social elements and their families bonds.
Even though we know quite a bit about the senses of the Lemur, there is still plenty that we really don’t know about. Studies are often placed on hold for such research due to the cost. With the Lemurs fighting for their survival right now the funding for them goes to conservation efforts most of the time.
