Primates
Lemurs are the most primitive and ancient primates that still exist. They are classified as “prosimians” in other words they are separate from other monkeys and apes. Prosimians have a wet nose (unlike the dry nose of monkeys and apes) and they often have multiple births and rely more on scent than sight.
A) Web site name : Lemur Center at Duke University
Web URL : http://lemur.duke.edu/discover/meet-the-lemurs/
Scroll down to “What is a lemur…”
1) What are “prosimian primates”? ______
______
2) Where are lemurs found? ______
3) How did lemurs get to Madagascar ? ______
Click on the photo of the “Aye-Aye”
4) What are two unusual features of the “aye-aye”?
______
5) What does the aye-aye feed on?
______
6) How do they find insect larva? ______
______
______
Click on a different lemur on the left of the screen.
7) Which lemur did you pick? ______
8) Summarize the information on this lemur: ______
______
B) Web site name : Air Madagascar
Web URL : http://www.air-mad.com/about_location.html
9) How far from the coast of Africa is Madagascar ? ______
10) What months of the year is the rainy season ? ______
11) If you were in the center of Madagascar, in which direction are the Comoros
Islands ?
______
Click on “National Parks” on the left of the screen.
12) Which part of the island (north, east etc) has sub-arid spiny thicket? ______
13) How far can a Sifaka jump? ______
14) The trees shown in the photograph are baobab trees. What is unusual about their appearance? ______
C) Web site name : Primate of the Week
Web URL : http://www.animalinfo.org/species/primate/varevari.htm
Read about the “Black-and-white Ruffed lemur”
15) What part of the body of this lemur is “ruffed”? ______
16) Which gender is dominant? ______
17) What is different from other primates about the way the infants are treated?
______
18) What are two reasons why this species is threatened?
______
D) Web site name : Endangered Species Classroom
Web URL : http://www.bagheera.com/inthewild/spotlight.htm
Read Spotlight on “Island Biogeography”
19) Why are island species particularly vulnerable to extinction ? ______
______
______
______
Click on the “Case Study: Black lemur”
20) Why were male and female black lemurs originally thought to be two
different species ? ______
21) What do black lemurs eat ? ______
In “Conservation Actions” click on “Hairy-Eared Dwarf Lemur”
22) When was the Hairy-eared dwarf lemur recently rediscovered ? ______
23) Why was it hard to find ? ______
24) What does this tell you about the estimate of 15 species of lemur becoming
extinct since humans arrived in Madagascar ? ______
______
25) What is the most interesting fact about lemurs that you have found as you
went through this exercise ? ______
______
______
Primates include monkeys and apes. Use the “Search” feature of the internet to get information from websites on the biology of any two of the apes listed below :
Orang-utan ( genus Pongo ), Chimpanzee ( Pan ),
Gibbon ( Hylobates), Gorilla ( Gorilla ).
26). First ape : ______Website : http:// ______
27). Does this site have photos or audio? ______
28). Summarize the information on this website: ______
29). Second ape : ______Website : http:// ______
30). Does this site have photos or audio? ______
31). Summarize the information on this website: ______
______