28 MA MMA LI A ORDER I. PRIM A TES. 



The typical lemurs, which attain their maximum development in the island 



of Madagascar, and are now found elsewhere only in Africa and the Oriental 



countries, are the first of three existing Old World families, 



Tlie Typical collectively forming the second great division of the Prim- 

 Lemurs. ates, technically known as the Lemuroidea. From the first 

 Family subordinal division, or Anthropoidea, the Lemuroids are dis- 

 Lemuridce. tinguished by the following features. In the first place, 

 their faces, instead of being more or less mobile and rounded, 

 are long, fox-like, and quite devoid of expression ; but in this respect they 

 are not very different from the marmosets. More important are certain 

 differences in the structure of the skull and the soft internal organs, but as 

 these require a certain amount of anatomical knowledge on the part of the 

 reader for their proper comprehension, they may be passed without further 

 notice. A distinctive character of the group is to be found in the circum- 

 stance that the second toe in the hind-foot always terminates in a long 

 curved claw. The thumb and great-toe are invariably present, but the 

 second or index finger of the fore-paw may be wanting. With the exception 

 of the aberrant aye-aye and tarsiers, which respectively form a family by 

 themselves, the middle pair of upper front or incisor teeth are separated 

 from one another by an interval or gap, whereas in all the monkeys they are 

 in contact. 



In appearance the various kinds of lemurs differ remarkably from one 

 another, some looking not unlike monkeys, while others are characterised by 

 their very long and slender limbs, enormous eyes, and somewhat ghostly form. 

 Whereas some are furnished with long tails, others are devoid of these append- 

 ages ; and the ring-tailed lemur of Madagascar differs from the rest in its tail 

 being ringed with black and white. This species is, moreover, an exception 

 in that it lives among rocks, whereas all the others are arboreal in their habits. 

 None of the living lemurs/ire of large size, the length of the head and body in 

 the largest being only about two feet, and many are not larger than a rat. All 

 are excellent climbers, and the majority spend the day in sleep, either in the 

 hole of a tree, in a nest, or rolled up in a ball and hanging to a bough. Their 

 food comprises leaves, fruits, birds and their eggs, reptiles and insects, and, 

 in one case, sugar-cane ; and the majority rarely descend to the ground. 

 Some of the larger Malagasy kinds are, however, an exception in this respect, 

 as well as in their diurnal habits, and they may at times be seen jumping 

 across the open spaces separating one wood from another in search of fresh 

 feeding-places. The structure of their brains shews that lemurs are creatures 

 of low organisation, and the existing forms are probably not very remotely 

 related to the ancestral stock which gave rise both to monkeys and lemurs. 

 Geologically the group is an ancient one ; and the living forms attain their 

 maximum development where they have been free from the competition of the 

 larger and more highly organised Mammals. 



In the typical lemurs constituting the family under consideration there are 

 two pairs of upper incisor teeth separated from one another by a gap in the 

 middle line ; while there are three pairs of lower incisors inclined almost 

 horizontally forwards. There are three pairs of molars in each jaw, but the 

 premolars may be either two or three on each side, and in the lower jaw the 

 first of these teeth assumes a tusk-like form, and thus plays the part of a 

 canine. The family may be sub-divided into four sub-families, most of which 

 contain a considerable number of genera. 



The first and highest sub-family, which is restricted to Madagascar and 



