Lemuriens!

So now that I’m back in civilization (ie, there are roads and phones, though not steady electricity), it’s high time for some recapping, especially as I’ve yet to post on Madagascar’s most prized inhabitants, the lemurs. My first encounter with these non-monkeys was several weeks ago, in a town half-way between Antananarivo and Toamasina. Just outside the village of Andisibe (pronounced like a dyslexic French child screwing up the start of the alphabet), is a massive national reserve that houses 4 lemur varieties. The main attraction is the Indri (which means “Look up!” in Malagasy), not technically a lemur, in that it’s not in the lemur genus, but still considered such by most. It’s the largest extant “lemur” (there’s evidence of 10-foot lemurs existing 100 years ago, but they seem to have been killed off) and is exceedingly cute. But shockingest of all is its noise, an eerie shriek that can be heard from all corners of the park (and in the video clip). In fact, all lemurs are quite talkative, and some of the noises they make seem utterly alien. They’re also good leapers and eaters, as evidenced here. The other lemurs in the park are the bamboo (not pictured here), the maki (grunting and eating and with baby on back), and the highly endangered golden sikha (with fashionable necklace).

NB:
So, on second thought, this internet is a bit too slow for videos. (Note how I've also been forced to sacrifice some image quality on the golden sikha!) Expect another post including these details soon.