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All Animals

Ring-tailed Lemur

Ring-tailed lemurs live in social groups and spend nearly half their time on the ground, the other in trees. All lemurs are found in the wild only on the island of Madagascar, where they are threatened by habitat loss, hunting and the pet trade.

Stable
Threatened
Endangered
Lemur Researcher Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy Trains the Next Generation of Wildlife Saving Heroes

Lemur Researcher Dr. Jonah Ratsimbazafy Trains the Next Generation of Wildlife Saving Heroes

July 16, 2019

Each year, 10 students from universities around the US are selected to spend a summer at the Houston Zoo in order to train, learn, and work alongside Zoo staff and regional conservation partners…

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Animal Facts

Scientific Name

Lemur catta

Range

South and southwest Madagascar

Location in the Zoo

Wortham World of Primates

Cool Animal Fact

Males have scent glands on their wrists and chest to mark territory. They engage in “stink fighting” with other males after their tails are anointed with scent.

VIDEO

How the Houston Zoo is working to save wildlife in Madagascar:

 

How we Help Save Them

  • 16 rangers and 10 gatekeepers trained in fire safety to improve the means of fighting forest fires in lemur habitat
  • 43,000 seedlings planted to increase food availability for grey-headed brown lemur.
  • Provided 26 micro-development grants to village associations.
  • 470 health checks were performed in order to improve the general health status of local community members

How You Can Help

Donate to help lemurs in the wild:

Donate Today

Become an informed shopper about furniture, musical instruments and other wood products. Whenever possible, choose locally sourced wood and don’t buy anything that is made of imported wood.

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