The ranging behavior of Lemur catta in the region of Cap Sainte‐Marie, Madagascar

Abstract

Large home ranges and extreme flexibility in ranging behaviors characterize most subarid dwelling haplorhines. However, the most comparable extant strepsirhine, Lemur catta, is characterized as having small home ranges with consistent boundaries. Since ranging studies on this species have been limited to gallery forest habitat, the author's goal is to identify ecological factors that affect range use of L. catta in one of the most resource-limited environments of its distribution. To conduct this study, ranging and behavioral data were collected on two nonoverlapping groups through all-day follows in the semidesert scrub environment of Cap Sainte-Marie (CSM), Madagascar. Data were collected from August 2007 through July 2008. Home range areas and day range lengths were generated using ArcGIS(®) 9.3. Other variables measured were habitat composition, diet richness, daily activity, and microclimate. Home range areas of CSM L. catta were very large relative to those of gallery forest L. catta, and there was great monthly variation. In contrast, day range lengths at CSM were either smaller than or approximated the size of comparative gallery forest groups. Temperature, sunning, and diet richness were associated with day range length for one but not for both groups and appear to be related to energy management needs. Based on these findings, the author suggests that L. catta is capable of extensive behavioral and ranging flexibility in the extremes of its environment. However, physiological constraints impose limitations that can interfere with its ability to adapt to even seemingly minor variations in microclimate and habitat structure within the same site.

Crowding as a primary source of stress in an endangered fragment‐dwelling strepsirrhine primate

“…L. catta is an ecologically flexible species Gould, 2006); however, it can be highly sensitive to habitat disturbance, with populations occurring at much lower densities in habitats of poorer quality Kelley, 2013;Gould & Andrianomena, 2015;Gould & Sauther, 2016;LaFleur et al, 2017). Due to the rapid loss of continuous habitat throughout its range in recent decades Bodin et al, 2006;Goodman, Rakotoarisoa & Wilme, 2006;Brinkmann et al, 2014;Gould & Sauther, 2016;LaFleur et al, 2017), L. catta has become a flagship species for conservation in Madagascar.…”

Beyond the Gallery Forest: Contrasting Habitat and Diet in Lemur catta Troops at Bezà Mahafaly Special Reserve

“…Studies from other non-gallery forest sites report large ring-tailed lemur group sizes without accompanying increases in Tamarindus density. Group sizes of >15 individuals (adults and subadults) inhabit the mixed deciduous/spiny bush forest of Tsimanampesotse National Park where Tamarindus has a limited distribution [LaFleur et al, 2014], and groups of 11-15 individuals occur in the far south in Cap Sainte-Marie where there is no tamarind [Kelley, 2013]. We also observed other large groups of ring-tailed lemurs on top of the escarpment while following our primary study group.…”

“…The tamarind fruits in these forests constitute the major food item annually for the lemurs, yet Tamarindus may be an exotic species to Madagascar, and reliance on its fruit may be of recent origin [Sauther and Cuozzo, 2009]. More recent surveys and field studies of populations from high altitudes to spiny desert scrub have broadened our understanding of what constitutes 'normal' conditions for ring-tailed lemurs [Goodman and Langrand, 1996;Gould et al, 2011;Kelley, 2013;LaFleur et al, 2014]. These sites typically have little to no tamarind trees, yet support sizable ring-tailed lemur populations.…”

Female infanticide and female-directed lethal targeted aggression in a group of ring-tailed lemurs (<i>Lemur catta</i>)

“…Depending on the habitat quality, the home range sizes of ring-tailed lemurs vary strongly in the wild (Sussman, 1991). In Madagascar's gallery forests they most commonly occupy home ranges from 6 to 30 ha (Sussman, 1991;Sauther et al, 1999;Mertl-Millhollen et al, 2003), while in drier habitats home ranges of up to 87-132 ha have been reported (Kelley, 2013). In richer habitats or during wet season, however, home ranges can also be as small as 2.6 ha (Gabriel, 2013).…”