Tarsiers

Fast Facts

• Genus Tarsius, 9 species

• Longest continuous fossil record of any primate genus 45 million years

• Small animals with enormous eyes

• Related to Lemurs

Description

• The head and body range from 4 to 6 inches in length

• Each eyeball is over half an inch in diameter and as large as their entire brain

• Their feet have extremely elongated tarsus bones, from which the animals get their name.

• The hind limbs and fingers are elongated • Tarsiers have very soft, velvety fur,

which is generally buff or beige in color

• Found in the islands of Southeast Asia

Feeding

• Nocturnal• Only entirely

carnivorous primate on Earth

• Primarily insectivorous

Reproduction

• Gestation takes about six months and tarsiers give birth to single offspring

• Young tarsiers are born furred, and with open eyes, and are able to climb within a day of birth

• They reach sexual maturity by the end of their second year

Conservation

• Tarsiers have never formed successful breeding colonies in captivity, and when caged, tarsiers have been known to injure and even kill themselves because of the stress.

• One site having some success at restoring tarsier populations is in the Philippine Island of Bohol. The Philippine Tarsier Foundation has developed a large semi-wild enclosure that uses lights to attract the nocturnal insects that make up the tarsier's diet

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LSZhcXxgaAI