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Lemur
Mom Makes Conservation History
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Tamatave,
Madagascar-- 29 November 02 -- In late October in a nest high
in the trees of eastern Madagascar, two newborn twin lemurs made
conservation history. Being twins, however, is not unusual for
black and white ruffed lemurs, an endangered primate that comes
exclusively from the island of Madagascar. What is special is
that this birth marks the first time a zoo-born lemur that was
released into the wild has successfully bred with a wild lemur
and given birth. The births are the result of more than a decade
of challenging work by the Madagascar Fauna Group.
Since
1997, the Madagascar Fauna Group (MFG) has released three sets
of American-born lemurs into a reserve in Madagascar, a large
island off the east coast of Africa. The project has successfully
demonstrated that lemurs can be returned to the wild and achieve
independence and integration into wild lemur populations. This
has provided a tremendous model for reintroducing other lemur
species. But with that profound success, one critical element
had not been achieved: offspring. But that was all to change beginning
with one wild male who began associating with one of the released
females earlier this year. Charlie Welch, the technical advisor
who heads up the MFG in Madagascar along with his wife Andrea
Katz, reported, "The female became sexually receptive in
mid-July and was observed by our conservation agents to breed
with her accompanying wild male." This can be a tricky time
for males as ruffed lemur females are only really sexually receptive
for one day a year. Welch continues, "Somehow other males
in the reserve got the word and two other wild males showed up
on the big day. However, her mate successfully fended them off
and was the only one actually observed to have bred."
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No
photos of the new lemurs are available yet. Pictured here
is another baby lemur recently born at Parc Ivoloina. Photo
by Connie
Bransilver.
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According
to Welch, "She did not give the team many clues about her
upcoming birth, and we were beginning to worry that perhaps she
was not pregnant after all. She disappeared in late October, though
the conservation agents knew from her radio collar signal that
she was hidden from view high in the treetops. Then in the first
week of November first one infant then both infants were observed
as she moved them about. Both infants continue to look strong
and healthy." MFG Research Coordinator Bernard Iambana and
the team of observers suspect the birth date to be 22 October
2002.
Family life is looking good for the twins. Mom is showing good
maternal instincts and moves the twins every few days to a different
nesting spot to keep them safe from predators. The wild male is
also playing his part in guarding the newborns. And although this
is a landmark for lemur conservation, the history-making mom is
already an experienced parent. She gave birth to a single male
in 1999 and then twins in 2000 while she was free ranging at Duke
University Primate Center in North Carolina to prepare for life
in the wild. Her three sons traveled with her to Madagascar and
still hang around with mom in the forest.
There
have been very few reintroductions of zoo-born primates into the
wild, and this is the MFG's flagship project. The new mother is
from the third group and was released in January 2001. Officially
known as the Integrated Conservation Management of the Betampona
Natural Reserve with a Re-stocking Program for Black and White
Ruffed Lemurs or Project Betampona, this project received international
recognition when long time lemur fan John Cleese of Monty Python
fame braved the steep, muddy terrain for a BBC/PBS television
special to see how the lemurs were doing. Cleese also donated
the proceeds of the London premiere of the film Fierce Creatures
to the project.
The
project focuses on the ruffed lemurs in Betampona Reserve whose
population is lower than in other forests. Because rice fields
surround the reserve, one of the projects goals was to import
new genes into this geographically isolated wild population. MFG
chief of staff Dr. Eva Sargent explains the importance of re-stocking
the lemurs: "Without this project, the Betampona population
of ruffed lemurs was calculated to become extinct from the negative
consequences of inbreeding within 100 years or less." In
typical fashion, John Cleese explains more simply why the project
is so important for lemurs, "So they don't really become
too inbred, otherwise they would get like the British Upper Class.
And I wouldn't want that to happen to these creatures!"
The
Madagascar Fauna Group was formed following a 1987 meeting in
the USA where government officials from Madagascar asked the international
zoo community for assistance with habitat protection, species
propagation, research, and training. Today, the MFG is an international
consortium of 40 zoos and related institutions working together
to conserve Madagascar's spectacular wildlife and wild places.
And what a wild place it is. More than 80% of Madagascar's plants
and animals live nowhere else in the world - including the lemurs.
In addition to Project Betampona, the MFG also operates Project
Ivoloina, a small zoo and forestry station which assists the Malagasy
people by teaching them the rarity of their animals as well as
sustainable farming methods. The project also educates schoolchildren
and provides seedlings to replant the rainforest. You can learn
more about the MFG by visiting their website at www.savethelemur.org.
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PROJECT
BETAMPONA BACKGROUND
Project Betampona is the MFG's most significant and ambitious
effort to date. The name is complex, but the idea is simple. Take
lemurs born in zoos and release them in Madagascar. Unfortunately,
making it happen is not as simple as the idea.
Under
the direction of MFG Technical Advisors, Charlie Welch and Andrea
Katz, the group collected much of the biological information required
to plan and carry out the restocking. The research ranged from
determining adequate food sources in potential release areas to
risk assessment research. They spent years developing working
relationships with Malagasy wildlife governing authorities based
on trust, consistent follow-through on promises, and mutual respect.
Back
in the States, the lemurs were selected by members of the Ruffed
Lemur Species Survival Plan (SSP). Under the auspices of the prestigious
American Zoo and Aquarium Association, the SSP manages the black-and-white
ruffed lemurs in the North American population for long-term survival.
The SSP committee selected potential candidates with the best
genetics and then screened them to insure they would not transmit
any diseases to the wild lemurs. Those lemurs that passed were
placed at either Duke University Primate Center or the Wildlife
Conservation Society's St. Catherine's Wildlife Survival Center
where they were released into large natural habitats to learn
survival skills. The lemurs that did well in these environments
were sent to Madagascar to be released into Betampona. And that's
the simple part.
Once
the lemurs arrived in Madagascar, the introduction came in stages.
Upon arrival, they traveled to the Project's base village of Rendrirendry,
where they were quarantined in a small enclosure and began to
get used to forest fruits. They then moved to another enclosure
in the forest for acclimatization to the sights, sounds and smells
of their future home and a final health check. They were also
fitted with radio collars so the researchers could keep careful
watch on them to make sure all was going well. Upon release, the
lemur's diet was supplemented by the MFG staff until they learned
to forage for themselves.
Every
day the MFG team of Malagasy scientists and conservation agents
is up at 4 a.m. to locate the lemurs by sunrise and then record
feeding, traveling and social behaviors until a second team takes
the next shift. The daily work of radio tracking and observing
small primates through thick forest and mountainsides is trying
on a good day, let alone when the rainy season turns all walks
into a trial of slogging through muck. But it's all done in the
hope for moments like these - when a new generation of lemurs
breathes genetic life into a formerly ill-fated group of animals.
Welch
concludes, "Successes such as we have been fortunate to experience
in the Betampona restocking project would not be possible without
the support of all the MFG member institutions. The MFG is an
excellent example of what zoos can do when they cooperate and
pool their resources."
Black
and White Ruffed Lemurs
Black and white ruffed lemurs (Varecia variegata) are beautiful
creatures covered with silky black and white fur. They have soft
velvet-like hands. They live exclusively in the rainforests on
the east coast of Madagascar. Ruffed lemurs are the largest living
quadrupedal lemurs with weights up to 4.5 kg. They are listed
as endangered on the 2002 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Ruffed
lemurs are excellent leapers through the canopy and can hang by
their back feet while they reach out for fruits or sip nectar
from flowers. They emit loud raucous calls hard to imagine coming
from such a gentle looking creature. After a gestation of 90 to
102 days, females give birth to twins (and sometimes more). Unlike
most other lemurs, the ruffed lemurs do not carry their offspring,
but "park" them in nests.
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