ORDER QUADRUMANA. 

 FAMILY III. PROSIMIA.— MAKIS. 



1S9 



SYNONYMS. 



Les Maris Cuv. Reg. Anim. I. 106. 



Lemur Linn. Gmel. I. 4L 



PfiosiMiA Briss. Reg. Anim. p. 220 Prosimii (Aflfer) et Macbotaksi (Langfussei) Illig. Prodr. p. 73. 



CHARACTERS OF THE FAMILY. 



General Form approaching to that of the Quadrupeds. 



Claws always on the first finger of the hinder hands, and sometimes also ou the second finger. Nails flat on all the other fingers, and on the 

 thumbs. 



The Makis, according to Linnaeus, comprise all those Quadruman- 

 ous animals, which have their incisors either more or less than four 

 in number, or at least otherwise directed than in the Apes or Mon- 

 keys. This negative character cannot fail to include animals dif- 

 fering rather considerably in their characters, while it does not even 

 unite all that ought to be comprised in one division. M. Geoffrey 

 has, however, established in this family several divisions, which are 

 more distinctly characterized. 



These animals have their four thumbs well developed and oppos- 

 able, and the first finger of the hinder hands is always armed with a 

 pointed and elevated claw ; all the other fingers are [usually] covered 

 with flat nails. The fur is woolly, and their teeth begin to exhibit 

 sharp tubercles, locking into each other, as we find in the insectivo- 

 rous quadrupeds. 



GENUS I. LEMUR.— LEMURS. 



Stjn. Les Makis proprement nrrs Cuv. Reg. Anim. I. 107. 



Leml-r.— Geoff. Ann. Mus. XIX. 158. 



GENERIC CHARACTERS. 



The Eyes 



The Head long and triangular. The Nostrils terminal, 

 medium size. The Ears short and hairy. 



The Dental Formula — !— ^ — - — = — =36. 



I :i+V+{2 k'-\-S)M 18 



The Tarsus shorter than the tibia. The Tail longer than the body, 



and covered with thick hair. 



The Mamm.e two. Habits diurnal. 



The First Finger only of the hinder hand with a claw. 



Inhabit IMadagascar and adjacent Islands. 



The Lemurs, or Proper Makis, have six incisors below, com- 

 pressed, and sloping forwards, but only four above, placed straight, 

 and the first incisors being separated from each other. The canines 

 are trenchant ; and there are six molars on each side above and six 

 below. 



These animals are very active, and have been termed Fox-nosed 

 Monkeys (Singes a museau de Renard), on account of their pointed 

 faces. Their ears are not very large. The species of Lemurs are 

 numerous ; they live on fruits, and inhabit the Island of Madagascar, 

 where they appear to occupy the place of the Monkeys, which, it is 

 reported, are not to be found in that island. They differ from each 

 other chiefly in their colours. 



To these characters a few genera! remarks may be added. Their lower 

 incisive teeth differ remarkably from those of the Monkeys both in form 

 and position, being very long and slender, but directed horizontally, and 

 not vertically, as usual. Tlie first incisor of the lower jaw is of a different 

 shape from those placed more internally, and is also larger ; a fact the 

 more important as, according to some authors, this last incisor should be 

 regarded as the true canine, and the ne.\t would thus be the first molar. 

 According to this view, many of the Lemurian animals would have pre- 

 cisely the same dental formula as the American Monkeys, and the ano- 

 maly which presents itself in these genera would be explained, the su- 

 perior canine being placed anterior to the lower one, an arrangement 

 which is but seldom seen. Be this as it may, the so-called inferior canine 

 is small, triangular, and very like a false molar. Tliere are three true 

 molars in each jaw. 



The hmbs of the Lemurs, especially the hinder ones, are long, and the 

 thumbs are widely separated from the fingers, so that they are excellent 

 instruments for grasping. No use has yet been discovered for the remark- 

 48 



able claw on the index toe. The tail is longer than the body, and con- 

 tributes to the gracefulness of the animal. The general form of the Le- 

 murs is slender; and their head being long and their snout projecting, 

 they have certainly some resemblance to the Fox. Their fur is generally 

 woolly, very bushy, and abundant ; their ears are short and clothed ; their 

 nostrils terminal and sinous ; and their eyes are placed not anteriorly, as 

 in Man, nor laterally, as in most animals, but in an intermediate position. 

 The mammae, two in number, are pectoral. 



As their organization thus approximates them to the Apes, so also do 

 their habits. They live upon trees, and vault with agility. M. F. Cuvier 

 tells us of one which would spring to a branch ten feet from the ground, 

 while its gait was at the same time constrained. They are not so petulant 

 and impudent as the Monkeys, especially those of the Old World ; and 

 they never advance upon a stranger with threatening gestures and gri- 

 maces, or attempt to seize or bite hard. Though their manners have 

 scarcely been at all studied in their native country, — Madagascar and the 

 neighbouring isles, — yet, being often domesticated in Europe, we are by 

 no means strangers to their dispositions. Many curious traits will be 

 found in the accounts of the species; and we may here subjoin a few of 

 the original remarks of M. F. Cuvier. He thinks, that however inoffen- 

 sive and timid, they are not remarkable for their intelligence ; and though 

 frequently tamed, they but rarely form strong attachments. They are 

 partly nocturnal, and spend much of the day rolled up in the form of a 

 ball. They feed themselves with their hands, and, notwithstanding the 

 length of their snout, drink by suction ; when at ease, their cry is a feeble 

 grunt, but when alarmed, it becomes deep and strong, and as they sing 

 out in concert, the noise becomes insupportable. The diffi;rent species 

 fight furiously among themselves, biting savagely, and tearing ofl^ each 

 other's hair with their hands. Two pair, M. Cuvier remarks, " which I 

 possessed, could never regard each other with complacency. If I raised 

 the partition which separated them, they were roused to fury, uttering 

 acute, interrupted, and rapid cries. Unless the wires of the cage had 

 separated them, they would certainly have injured each other ; and the 

 females were not more amicable than the males." These animals were fed 

 with boiled roots and fruits, bread and milk, and they were preserved at 

 a uniform and warm temperature. Provided they were kept clean, they 

 enjoyed excellent health ; they seemed less annoyed with their captivity, 

 and the inclemency of the climate, than the Apes. The history of an 

 individual, as afterwards detailed, was traced for nineteen years. 



1. LEMUR CATTA RING-TAILED LEMUR. 



Syn. Le Mococo Cuv. Reg. Anim. I. 107. 



Lemur Catta.— Linn. Gmel. L 4.3.— Geoff. Ann. Mus. XIX. 162 



Desm. Mam. 98. 



Ring-tailed Lemur. — Shaw, Gen. Zool. I Ring-tailed Maucauco. 



— Penn. Quadr. I. No. 130. 



Icon. Le Mococo Audeb. Sing. — M^nag. du Mus. — Buff. Hist. Nat. XIII. 



pi. 2i. 

 Mococo male. — F, Cuv. et Geoff. Hist, Mam. 

 Maucauco. — Edw. Birds, pi. 197. — Copied iu Schreb. pi. 4'1. 



SPECIFIC CHARACTERS. 



The Hair grey, reddish above, whitish beneath ; on the tail annulated 

 with black. 



This Ring-tailed Lemur is the one of all others with which we are 

 most familiar in Europe, and is remarkable for the beauty of its fur, the 

 elegance of its form, and its familiarity. It is fourteen inches long 

 from the snout to the origin of the tail. All the upper parts of its body 

 are of a beautiful grey colour, which has a rosy hue on the back and 

 shoulders; the summit of the head, and back of the neck, are black; as 

 are the margin of the eyes and the snout; all the other parts of the body 

 are white ; and the tail is ringed throughout, alternately black and white, 



