THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD 



fhoto > A. 



Rudxind & So 



TARSIER 



These little anlmah hop about in the trees like frogs. 



seen 



They are nocturnal, and seldom 



THE A YE- AYE 



Last, and most remarkable of 

 all these weird lemuroids, is the 

 AYE-AYE. It is placed in a group 

 by itself, and has teeth like 

 those of the Rodents, a large 

 bushy tail, and most extra- 

 ordinarily long, slender fingers, 

 which it probably uses for pick- 

 ing caterpillars and grubs out of 

 rotten wood. It is nearly as large 

 as an Arctic fox, but its habits 

 are those of a lemur. In Mada- 

 gascar it haunts the bamboo 

 forests, feeding on the juice of 

 sugar-cane, grubs, and insects. 

 The fingers of its hands are of 

 different sizes and lengths, though 

 all are abnormally long and slender. 

 The second finger seems to have 

 " wasted," but is said to be of the 

 utmost value to its owner in ex- 

 tracting grubs and insects from the burrows in which they dwell, or the crannies in which they 

 may have taken refuge. Very seldom is this animal seen alive in captivity. Although com- 

 monly called Aye-aye in this country, it is doubtful if this is really its native name. The aye- 

 aye was long a puzzle to naturalists, but is now classed as a lemuroid. 



THE living races of animals have thus far been reviewed along the completed list of the first 

 great order the Primates. Even in that circumscribed group how great is the tendency to 

 depart from the main type, and how wonderful the adaptation to meet the various needs of the 

 creatures' environment ! The skeletons, the frames on which 

 these various beings are built up, remain the same in character; 

 but the differences of proportion in the limbs, of the muscles 

 with which they are equipped, and of the weight of the bodies to 

 be moved are astonishing. Compare, for instance, the head of the 

 male Gorilla, with its great ridges of bone, to which are attached 

 the muscles which enable it to devour hard tropical fruits and 

 bite off young saplings and bamboos, with the rounded and 

 delicate head of the Insect-eating Monkeys of South Africa ; or 

 set side by side the hand of the Chimpanzee with that of the Aye- 

 aye, with its delicate, slender fingers, like those of a skeleton 

 hand. What could be more diverse than the movements of these 

 creatures, whose structure is nevertheless so much alike ? Some of 

 the lemuroids are as active as squirrels, flying lightly from branch 

 to branch ; in others, as the Slow Lorises, the power of rapid move- 

 ment has disappeared, and been replaced by a creeping gait which 

 cannot be accelerated. Already, in a single order, we see the rich 

 diversity of nature, and its steady tendency to make all existing 

 things serviceable by adapting other parts of creation to their use 

 or enjoyment. 



Photo by L. Midland, F.Z.S., N. VinMty 



HEAD OF AYE-AYE 



The aye-aye li-ves mainly in the wild 



