412 MAMMALIA 



stomach is generally simple. The placenta may be non-deciduate, 

 or deciduate and metadiscoidal. 



Lemurs {Le?nuroided), the lowest division of the Primates, in- 

 clude the tarsier, the aye-aye and the lemurs. They have long, 

 fox-like muzzles, small ears and 32-36 teeth. In the center of the 

 upper jaw there is always a toothless gap. The ruffed , or black and 

 white lemur, the largest of the race, is about the size of a house cat, 

 has a very long tail, and beautifully soft black and white fur. Other 

 lemurs, the mouse lemur ^ the dwarf lemur and \\^^ fat-tail lemur ^ are 

 much less beautiful than the black and white lemur. They aestivate 

 during the hot dry seasons, living on stored-up fat. The " slow " 

 lemurs, found in West Africa and East India, are extremely sluggish, 

 live in trees and eat fruits, insects, birds' eggs and young birds. 

 The aye-aye of Madagascar resembles a large big-eyed squirrel with 

 the face of a weasel. It has but 18 teeth, with large incisors and 

 no canines. Its third finger is extremely slender and elongated and 

 is used in securing food and in making the animal's toilet. The 

 female constructs a nest for her single offspring. The tarsier is 

 found in the forests of Borneo and the Philippine Islands. It is 

 about the size of a small rat, has a long tufted tail and hind legs 

 considerably longer than the front ones. Its paws have long bony 

 digits with pads enabling it to climb smooth bamboo trees. It is 

 nocturnal, hunting for insects and lizards. 



Monkeys. — The Platyrrhina (broad nosed), or American mon- 

 keys, have a wide space between the nostril openings which are 

 directed outward. The larger species have prehensile tails. 



The marmosets {Hapalidae) are the lowest in the scale of the 

 American monkeys. They are small, delicate creatures with hair- 

 less faces, large eyes and very long tails. The hair is abundant and 

 silky, standing up on the head in a ruff. Their tails are not pre- 

 hensile. The Saki monkeys are black shaggy-haired animals with 

 a long black chin beard and a large hairy, non-prehensile tail. 

 They come from tropical South American east of the Andes and are 

 of medium size. The owl monkeys, also from South America, have 

 long, hairy non-prehensile tails and extremely large, owl-like eyes. 

 The squirrel monkeys are extremely active and nervous and must be 

 kept in cages. They are arboreal, preferring insects as their food. 

 The Cebidae, found in South America, have 2^^ teeth, flat nails and 

 frequently have a prehensile tail. The capuchin, or " ring-tail " 

 monkey {Cebus), comes from Central and South America. It has a 



