i 7 o THE BOOK OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM 



Madagascar, and whilst the young females possess the colour of 

 the mother, the young males resemble their father. The colour 

 of the male is quite black, as Fig. 137 shows, the general colour of 

 the female being rich ferruginous brown, with the arms, legs and 

 neck reddish-yellow, and the throat and under-parts creamy-white. 



DWARF LEMURS.— The Dwarf Lemur (Fig. 138) is a tiny creature 

 belonging to a different genus from the last-mentioned species, and 

 these Dwarf Lemurs have the distinction of being the smallest of 

 the Monkey tribe, to which, of course, they belong. 



In size they are inferior to the common Brown Rat, as can be 

 ascertained by a reference to the photograph, in which some grapes 

 in the foreground will serve as a comparison. 



Most nocturnal animals are characterized by the large size of the 

 eyes, and in the case of these Dwarf Lemurs we find no exception 

 to the general rule, for by means of these prominent bright organs 

 of sight the little beasties are able to distinguish small objects in the 

 dark. Their food consists principally of insects and fruit. The 

 hind-limbs are longer than those in front; the snout is short, and the 

 ears elongated. 



There are five species of Dwarf Lemurs, known as the Small 

 Dwarf Lemur, which is the smallest of all the Lemurs ; the Dormouse 

 Dwarf Lemur, which has a round, Cat-like head, and is redder in 

 colour than the last-named; Smith's Dwarf Lemur, a rare species, 

 which has apparently not been observed to any great extent ; the 

 Fork-Marked Dwarf Lemur, which is reddish-grey, and distin- 

 guished by "the black dorsal streak bifurcating on the forehead into 

 two branches, extending on the inner side of the ears and terminat- 

 ing over each eye," and a fifth species known as Coquerel's Dwarf 

 Lemur, or, as it is called by the natives, the "Sisiba," which 

 resembles the Fork-Marked kind, but is somewhat smaller. 



GREY SLOW LORIS.— The Slow Lemurs constitute a separate 

 sub-family known as the Lorisinae, one genus being represented in 

 Asia and the second in Africa. These Slow Lemurs have soft woolly 

 fur; a pointed face; large piercing eyes not far removed from one 

 another; and fore and hind limbs of about equal proportions. 



Their distribution in Africa is restricted to the western portions 

 of the great continent, whilst the Asiatic species inhabit India, Malay 

 and Indo-China. The Grey Slow Loris in Fig. 139 came from 

 China. The Slow Loris is ashy-grey on the upper parts, paler 

 underneath, with a silvery back and rufescent rump ; there is a 



