Golden-brown Mouse Lemur (Microcebus ravelobensis)


MORPHOLOGY:
This species has a pelage color which is golden-brown on the dorsal side and yellowish-white on the ventral side (Zimmermann et al., 1998). There is a white stripe running from the lower forehead down to the tip of the muzzle (Zimmermann et al., 1998). The ears of this species are yellow-brown in color and are long and naked (Zimmermann et al., 1998). The pelage of the golden-brown mouse lemur is short and dense (Garbutt, 1999). The tail of this species is longer, thinner, and more densely furred as compared to the sympatric Microcebus murinus (Zimmermann et al., 1998). The hindfoot is also longer in the golden-brown mouse lemur than in Microcebus murinus(Zimmermann et al., 1998). This species has an adult body mass that ranges from 40 to 70 grams (Garbutt, 1999).

RANGE:
The golden-brown mouse lemur is found in North-western Madagascar in Ampijoroa Nature Reserve (Zimmermann et al., 1998). This species is found in the higher canopy heights of the deciduous dry forest (Zimmermann et al., 1998).

ECOLOGY:
This species does not store fat in its tail as the sympatric Microcebus murinus does (Zimmermann et al., 1998). This species builds nests in tangles of vines and dead leaves (Garbutt, 1999).

LOCOMOTION:
This species moves through the forest by leaping which contrasts to the sympatric Microcebus murinus which moves by arboreal quadrupedalism (Zimmermann et al., 1998).

SOCIAL BEHAVIOR:
The golden-brown mouse lemur was found to be more aggressive than the sympatric Microcebus murinus (Zimmermann et al., 1998).

VOCAL COMMUNICATION:

OLFACTORY COMMUNICATION:

VISUAL COMMUNICATION:

TACTILE COMMUNICATION:

REPRODUCTION:
The golden-brown mouse lemur begins estrus at the end of August, whereas the sympatric Microcebus murinus does not begin estrus until the middle of September (Zimmermann et al., 1998).

REFERENCES:
Garbutt, N. 1999. Mammals of Madagascar. Yale University Press: New Haven.

Zimmermann, E., Cepok, S. Rakotoarison, N., Zietemann, V., and Radespiel, U. 1998. Sympatric mouse lemurs in North-west Madagascar: A new rufous mouse lemur species (Microcebus ravelobensis). Folia Primatologica. Vol. 69, 106-114.

Last Updated: October 9, 2003.
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