Goblin lemurs
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Sulawesi tarsier ( Tarsius sp.) |
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| Tarsiidae | ||||||||||||
| JE Gray , 1825 |
The Koboldmakis (Tarsiidae) are a family of primates . They are small, nocturnal, tree-dwelling animals that are common on the Southeast Asian islands. Characteristics are the strikingly large eyes, the very agile neck and the long hind legs, with which they can jump very far. In the past they were counted among the “ half-apes ” (no longer recognized today) ; but they are more closely related to the monkeys and form with them the dry- nosed primates (Haplorhini). 14 species are currently known, which according to the current status are divided into three genera ( Tarsius , Carlito and Cephalopachus ).
features
Goblin lemurs are very small primates. They reach a head-trunk length of 9 to 16 centimeters, the tail is 13 to 28 centimeters almost twice as long as the trunk. The weight of most species is between 90 and 130 grams, the dwarf tarsier only reaches 50 grams, the heaviest species reach up to 150 grams. The fur is short and silky, it is predominantly gray in color, but can vary from gray-brown to red-brown to orange-yellow. The belly is usually a little lighter, often whitish or light gray.
The hands are relatively large, the thumb cannot be opposed . There are disc-shaped finger pads on the underside of the fingertips. The hind legs are greatly elongated; in relation to their height, tarsiers have the longest hind legs of all primates. The tibia and fibula are fused together in the lower area, which serves to stabilize the ankle joint . This is modified in such a way that it almost only allows hinge movements, but no rotation. The ankle and heel bones are greatly elongated; the scientific name Tarsius is derived from this special structure of the tarsus . The second and third toes have claws, the remaining fingers and toes have nails .
The long tail, usually ending with a hairy part, serves on the one hand as a balance organ during the jumps. On the other hand, it is used for support when the animals cling to a narrow tree trunk in the typical vertical position - this is necessary because the thumb cannot be opposed and the big toe is relatively small and weak. In at least one species, the Sunda Koboldmaki , there is a papillary ridge skin in the middle of the tail on the underside , which improves the adhesion to the tree trunk. The hairiness of the tail is different depending on the species, in most species there is only a tuft of hair on the tip of the tail, the tail of the Philippine lemur is completely hairless.
The head looks rounded due to the short snout and sits on a very short neck. Thanks to the modified cervical vertebra, it is very rotatable and can be rotated almost 180 degrees in both directions. Goblin lemurs have the largest eyes of all mammals relative to their height. A single eye cannot be moved here, but this does not entail any disadvantage as the neck is extremely mobile. The eyeball has a diameter of around 16 millimeters and is therefore larger than the brain. The eyes sit in orbital funnels, which are built similar to the eye sockets of monkeys . The ears are enlarged like a bat, they are thin, very mobile, for the most part hairless and serve in the frequency range of up to 91 kHz for orientation and localization of the prey. As with all dry nose primates, the nose has no nasal mirror , the upper lip is unsplit and flexible.
The tooth formula of the Koboldmakis is I 2 / 1- C 1 / 1- P 3 / 3- M 3-3, so a total of 34 teeth. What is unique among primates is that there are only two incisors in the lower jaw. The central upper incisors are large, as are the canines. The molars have pointed cusps, and the incisors are pointed. Overall, the teeth are adapted to cracking open insect shells.
distribution and habitat
Koboldmakis inhabit the Southeast Asian island world. Their distribution area includes southern Sumatra , Borneo , the southern Philippines and the island of Sulawesi - each including offshore islands. Based on the distribution, three groups of species can be recognized, some of which also differ in their physique and behavior: the Sunda group (on Sumatra and Borneo), the Philippines group (both with only one species each) and the Sulawesi group ( with the remaining species) - see also internal systematics .
Goblin lemurs, besides macaques and humans, are the only primates to have crossed the Wallace Line . All other primates only occur west of this biogeographical dividing line between Borneo and Sulawesi. Correspondences in body structure and lifestyle suggest that Sulawesi was colonized by the Koboldmakis from the north via the Philippines, not from the west via the much closer Borneo. This is supported by the existence of endemic species on the islands of Sangihe and Siau , located between the Philippines and Sulawesi .
These animals are found in a wide variety of habitats. They primarily live in forests such as tropical rain , mountain , gallery and mangrove forests , but also, for example, in swamps and bamboo thickets. In general, they prefer areas densely covered with undergrowth and need thickets of plants as sleeping places. They occur from sea level up to 1,500 meters above sea level, only the dwarf tarsier probably only occurs between 1,800 and 2,200 meters above sea level.
Way of life
Activity times and movement
Goblin lemurs are nocturnal animals. During the day they sleep in thickets or in a tangle of creepers, rarely in tree hollows. The sleeping places are often on the edge of the area and are usually only two meters above the ground. Tarsier from the Sulawesi group usually only has one sleeping place, while Philippine tarsier has three to four.
At sunset, the animals wake up and begin the activity phase, which ends shortly after sunrise. Sulawesi lemurs spend 55% of their time foraging, 23% moving, 16% resting and 6% social activities.
During their nocturnal forays, tarsiers stay close to the ground, often only 30 to 60 centimeters above the ground, they rarely come above two meters in height. Their mode of locomotion is a highly specialized " vertical clinging and leaping ". Their preferred habitat are thin, vertical tree trunks or branches. Thanks to their modified rear legs, they can make jumps up to five meters wide (with loss of height), the tail is used for control.
Social and territorial behavior
The social behavior of the Koboldmakis is not uniform. The Sunda Koboldmakis live largely solitary. The territories of the males do not overlap, nor do those of the females. On the other hand, male and female territories partially overlap, but are never congruent. Sunda lemurs go looking for food one by one and also sleep alone. There are contradicting reports about the Philippine lemurs, presumably these animals also live rather solitary.
In contrast, the species of the Sulawesi group live in family groups made up of two to eight animals. It is not known whether this is a permanent monogamous way of life. Sometimes a male forms a group with two or three adult females. The group members go to sleep together, where there is also lively social behavior such as mutual grooming. They also sleep together, but with the exception of mothers and their young animals without physical contact. Even on the nightly forays, group members keep bumping into each other.
The nocturnal forays are around 0.5 to 2 kilometers long. The area size varies from 1 to 10 hectares and depends on the species and the habitat. Areas are marked with urine and glandular secretions .
In addition to this olfactory communication, the animals also communicate with sounds. Sunda-Koboldmakis make sounds in the evening and in the morning with which they indicate their own territory to other species. For the species of the Sulawesi group, duet chants are typical, which are uttered in pairs, mainly in the early morning. Duet chants are started by the female, with changing frequencies shortly afterwards the male also joins in. These chants last about two minutes and probably have several functions: In addition to marking the area, they should also strengthen the cohesion within the group. In addition to the duet chants, other sounds are known that are used, for example, to warn or search for group members, or which are emitted while playing.
nutrition
Koboldmakis are pure carnivores - they are the only primates that do not ingest any plant material. An important part of the diet are insects such as beetles , cockroaches , jumping and ghosts , butterflies , cicadas , termites , ants and others. To varying degrees, they also eat other invertebrates such as spiders and crabs , and sometimes small vertebrates such as bats , frogs , birds and snakes . With their big fingers they can catch prey from the air; in addition, they can jump on a victim with one big leap and overwhelm them. After killing their prey with bites, they sit on a branch, grab the animal with their front paws and eat it head first.
Reproduction
There have been reports of certain breeding seasons, which is unusual for residents of rainforests. The mating season for the Sunda tarsier ranges from October to December. Sulawesi lemurs have two mating seasons: one from April to June and one from October to November. Other species, such as the Philippine tarsier, can mate all year round.
During oestrus, the female's genitals swell and turn red. At least in captive animals, the impulse to mate comes from the female, who presents the male with its swollen genital region. Males respond with a chirping sound and sniff at the females. The mating itself takes place on a vertical trunk, the male approaches the female from below and behind.
After a gestation period of around 180 to 190 days, the female usually gives birth to a single young. The gestation period is very long for animals of this size, but the young at birth is very developed and large. It is already 20 to 33% of the weight of a full-grown animal, is covered in fur, and has eyes open.
The rearing of the young is largely the responsibility of the female. With the species living in groups on Sulawesi, other group members, especially half-grown females, can also participate. You carry the boy, play with him and groom his fur.
In the first weeks of life, the mother often carries the young with her mouth - the young animal clinging to the mother's fur is only very rarely observed. However, the young spends a lot of time alone, the mother “parks” it in the branches while looking for food. She stays close to him and visits it again and again, often - an average of eleven times a night with the Sulawesi Koboldmaki - she takes it to a new place.
The young animal moves away from its mother for the first time at 10 to 15 days, and at four to five weeks it makes its first attempts to hunt prey independently. It is finally weaned at around 80 days. In the case of species living in groups, males and females have to leave their birth group. Sexual maturity occurs at one to two years. The maximum age of an animal in human care was over 16 years, and life expectancy in the wild is unknown.
Natural enemies
The natural enemies of the Koboldmakis include crawling cats , snakes , monitor lizards , birds of prey and owls . It is known from Sulawesi tarsier that all members of a group attack a snake as soon as it is detected, yelling at it and even biting it. Even males from other groups can participate in these attacks.
The Siau and, to a lesser extent, the Sangihe Koboldmaki show special precautionary measures . Like the other species in the Sulawesi group, they live in groups but sleep separately from each other. In addition, unlike the other species, they retreat to the highest regions of the trees to sleep. The urine scent traces of the Siau Koboldmakis also evaporate much faster than those of the other species. This is interpreted as an adaptation to enemy pressure from feral domestic cats and possibly even humans - the population on Siau is hunted by humans for food like no other.
Tarsier and people
One of the main threats to the Koboldmakis is the destruction of their habitat by deforestation. They can to a certain extent live in habitats that have been changed by humans, but they depend on both thickets for shelter and vertical trunks as a place to stay. Under certain circumstances they can also live in plantations and gardens, but the population densities are higher in undisturbed habitats.
Hunting is also a danger in some places. As mentioned above, siau tarsier are hunted for their meat. Furthermore, there is a hidden trade in the animal skin, which is brutally separated from the living animal. As a result of a wave of press in 2007, this trade has been going on behind the scenes since then. Concrete figures are therefore not known. Sometimes farmers persecute them because they are mistakenly mistaken for agricultural pests. They are locally extinct in areas where insecticides or herbicides have been used intensively .
Hunting for pet ownership endangers the Sunda and Philippine tarsiers. In general, Koboldmakis are difficult to keep - more than half of all animals die within two years of being caught. In the case of the species of the Sulawesi group, all attempts to keep them in captivity have so far failed. Some animals even rammed their heads on the bars to death.
Most species are on the IUCN as "endangered" ( vulnerable ) or ( "high risk" endangered ) listed. Particular attention should be paid to the Siau tarsier , endemic to a small island, and the dwarf tarsier , of which living animals were spotted for the first time in over 70 years in 2008.
Goblin lemurs used to play a role in Iban superstition in Borneo. They believed that the animals 'heads were loosely attached to their bodies because they could apparently rotate it 360 degrees, and they feared that if they uttered the animals' names they would face the same fate.
Systematics
External system and history of development
In the past, the Koboldmakis were grouped together with the Galagos , the Loris and the Lemurs as " half- apes" who faced the monkeys . Like most of the other half-monkeys, tarsier are small and nocturnal, they have a V-shaped lower jaw , a two-horned uterus and cleaning claws - but on the second and third toe and not only on the second like the other species. The Koboldmakis show particular similarities with the Galagos living in Africa, which occupy a comparable ecological niche : They are also small, nocturnal and sometimes jumping primates that feed on insects, among other things. Galagos have, among other things, the large eyes and ears and the elongated tarsus in common with the Koboldmakis.
Today these similarities are seen as original primate traits or - especially in the case of the Galagos - as the result of convergent evolution . On the other hand, goblin tarsiers have some common derived characteristics with the monkeys: Despite their nocturnal activity, they have no tapetum lucidum (a reflective layer in the eye), the nose has no nasal mirror and the upper lip is flexible and not split. For these reasons, tarsier and monkeys are now grouped together as dry- nosed primates (due to the lack of a nasal mirror), the other earlier monkeys form the wet-nosed primates . This is expressed in the following cladogram:
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Some features such as the missing tapetum lucidum and the relatively large teeth make it possible that Koboldmakis are secondarily dwarfed and nocturnal primates, i.e. have evolved from larger, diurnal animals.
The Koboldmakis (Tarsiidae) are the only recent representatives of the Tarsiiformes. A very early representative of the Tarsiiformes from the East Asian Eocene was Archicebus . A family closely related to the Koboldmakis were the Omomyidae , which were distributed in North America and Eurasia from the Early Eocene to the Oligocene . The oldest representatives of the Koboldmakis themselves are Xanthorhysis tabrumi and Tarsius eocaenus , both from the middle Eocene from China. Another extinct representative was Afrotarsius chatrathi , who lived in what is now Egypt in the early Oligocene. Finally, Tarsius thailandicus is known from the early Miocene .
Internal system
Today there are 14 known species of tarsier, but it is likely that this number will increase.
- Genus Cephalopachus
- The Sunda Koboldmaki ( Cephalopachus bancanus ) lives on Sumatra and Borneo and offshore islands.
- Genus Carlito
- The Philippine tarsier ( Carlito syrichta ) is native to the central and southern Philippines.
- Genus Sulawesi tarsier ( Tarsius )
- The Selayar tarsier ( Tarsius tarsier ), the type species of the genus, occurs only on the island of Selayar south of Sulawesi.
- The Diana tarsier ( Tarsius dentatus ) lives in the central area of Sulawesi.
- The Makassar tarsier ( Tarsius fuscus ) is only known from the area around Makassar .
- The Lariang tarsier ( Tarsius lariang ) was described as a new species in 2006 and occurs in the western part of Sulawesi.
- Tarsius niemitzi was described as a new species in 2019. It occurs on the Togian Islands .
- The Peleng tarsier ( Tarsius pelengensis ) is endemic to the island of Peleng, east of Sulawesi .
- The dwarf tarsier ( Tarsius pumilus ) is the smallest member of its genus and lives in the mountainous interior of Sulawesi.
- The Sangihe tarsier ( Tarsius sangirensis ) is endemic to the island of Sangihe north of Sulawesi.
- Tarsius spectrumgurskyae only lives in the east of the northern peninsula (Semenanjung Minahassa).
- Jatna's tarsier ( Tarsius supriatnai ) occurs only in the central part of Semenanjung Minahassa.
- The Siau tarsier ( Tarsius tumpara ) occurs only on the island of Siau , also north of Sulawesi.
- The Wallace's tarsier ( Tarsius wallacei ) was discovered in 2010 and occurs in two isolated populations in central Sulawesi.
On the southeastern peninsula ( Sulawesi Tenggara ) there could be three more, previously undescribed species.
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literature
- Thomas Geissmann : Comparative Primatology. Springer-Verlag, Berlin et al. 2002, ISBN 3-540-43645-6 .
- Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World. 6th edition. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 1999, ISBN 0-8018-5789-9 .
- Don E. Wilson, DeeAnn M. Reeder (Eds.): Mammal Species of the World. A taxonomic and geographic Reference. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Geissmann (2003), p. 111.
- ↑ a b c K. J. Gron: Primate Factsheets: Tarsier ( Tarsius ) Taxonomy, Morphology, & Ecology , accessed February 24, 2009.
- ↑ Geissmann (2003), p. 114.
- ↑ Sound files of a duet song by Sulawesi Koboldmakis ( Memento of the original from February 28, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b Myron Shekelle, Colin Groves, Stefan flags and Jatna Supriatna: Tarsius tumpara : A New Species from Tarsier Siau Iceland, North Sulawesi. In: Primate Conservation 23 (2008), pp. 55–64 online edition ( Memento of the original of July 24, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 1.6 MB)
- ^ A b C. Van Til: Tarsius tarsier at Animal Diversity Web , accessed February 25, 2009.
- ↑ Report in Scientific American from November 19, 2008 ( Memento of the original from December 10, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ simplified from Geissmann (2003), p. 119.
- ^ Walter Carl Hartwig: The Primate Fossil Record. Cambridge University Press, 2002, ISBN 978-0521663151 , page 71.
- ^ A b c Colin Groves, Myron Shekelle: The Genera and Species of Tarsiidae. International Journal of Primatology, December 2010, Volume 31, Issue 6, pp. 1071-1082, doi: 10.1007 / s10764-010-9443-1
- ↑ Groves & Shekelle (2010), page 1,078th
- ^ S. Merker, CP Groves: Tarsius lariang : A New Primate Species from Western Central Sulawesi. In: International Journal of Primatology 27 (2), 2006, pp. 465-485 doi: 10.1007 / s10764-006-9038-z
- ↑ a b Myron Shekelle, Colin P. Groves, Ibnu Maryanto, Russell A. Mitter Meier, Agus Salim and Mark S. Springer: A New Tarsier species from the Togean Islands of Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, with References to Wallacea and Conservation on Sulawesi. Primate Conservation 2019 (33), 2019, pp. 1–9 PDF
- ↑ a b Myron Shekelle, Colin Groves, Ibnu Maryanto and Russell A. Mittermeier: Two New Tarsier Species (Tarsiidae, Primates) and the Biogeography of Sulawesi, Indonesia In: Primate Conservation 31 (2017), pp. 1-9 online edition ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (PDF; 5.7 MB)
- ↑ Stefan Merker, Christine Driller, Hadi Dahruddin, Werdenateti, Walberto Sinaga, Dyah Perwitasari-Farajallah & Myron Shekelle (Online First): Tarsius wallacei: A New Tarsier Species from Central Sulawesi Occupies a Discontinuous Range. International Journal of Primatology. doi: 10.1007 / s10764-010-9452-0
- ↑ Burton, J. and A. Nietsch. 2010. Geographical variation in duet songs of Sulawesi tarsiers: evidence for new cryptic species in south and southeast Sulawesi. Int. J. Primatol. 31: 1123-1146.
