LEMUR Lemur stew for dinner The ring-tailed lemur is a likeable animal. It has a gentle, peaceful disposition and adjusts well to captivity. Pet lemurs will even reproduce. The lemur is playful and likes to be caressed. Unhappily its meat is very tasty and the animal is much hunted. Poor lemur! It doesn't deserve to end up in a saucepan. The lemur is a lower primate, related to monkeys and to the ancestors of man. Unlike other lemurs the ring-tailed lemur is active by day. It can be distinguished from other lemurs by its graceful form and movements and by its splendid long, ringed tail. It lives in small bands in the rocky parts of central and southwestern Madagascar. As much at home on the ground as in trees, it moves quickly. It is an excellent climber, and it jumps from branch to branch with great ease. It feeds on fruit, leaves, buds, and small mammals, and it drinks almost nothing. The lemur's cry is like the meowing of a domestic cat. It sits upright on its bottom. The female usually bears a single baby, which clings to the mother as she climbs and leaps among the trees and rocks. It will be independent after six months and adult at the age of a year and a half. PHYLUM: Vertebrata CLASS: Mammalia ORDER: Primates FAMILY: Lemuridae CHARACTERISTICS: Length: to 16 inches, plus 20 inches for the tail Period of gestation: 120 to 135 days 5 fingers on each hand Good eyesight 36 teeth All information courtesy of Leisure Books, Ltd.