BABOONS AND LEMURS 159 



present day the headquarters of the lemurs is the island 

 of Madagascar. 



Three genera of the family are known in Africa, of 

 which only one, divided into about a dozen species, is 

 native to the south of the continent. 



These African lemurs are quaint little animals, with 

 elongated fox-like faces, big, round expressionless eyes, 

 and long bushy tails. They vary in size from the dimen- 

 sions of a small monkey to not much bigger than a squirrel. 

 They are entirely arboreal and nocturnal by habit, and 

 spend the day curled up among the densest and thickest 

 foliage they can find. Their food consists of fruits, 

 insects and eggs. 



The best-known south African species is the Moholi 

 Lemur generally known as the " bush baby." It measures 

 only some fifteen inches in all, of which the tail takes 

 up half. It is covered with greyish brown soft fur, and 

 has a white stripe along the nose and two black rings 

 round the eyes ; the throat is white. It is an active 

 little animal, and its call, constantly heard at night in 

 the bush, has given to it its pretty name. 



