Ring Tailed Lemur Regularly Sleep in Same Caves, Study [VIDEO]

A team of scientists has discovered that the ring tailed lemurs in Madagascar are the only primates that consistently sleep in the same caves.

It was known that ring tailed lemur found only in Madagascar sleep in caves. But this is the first time scientists at the University of Colorado Boulder have discovered that the ring tailed lemur sleep in the same limestone chambers and crevice every night.

According to the Michelle Sauthe at University of Colorado Boulder anthropology associate professor, the ring-tailed lemurs may opt to sleep in caves for several reasons. While the cave-sleeping behavior is likely important because it provides safety from potential predators, it also can provide the primates with access to water and nutrients, help to regulate their body temperatures during cold or hot weather and provide refuge from encroaching human activities like deforestation.

During the six-year study the researchers were amazed to see the same troop of lemurs using the same caves to sleep on a daily basis. There has been a steady and habitual use of the caves for night sleep. This sort of a behavioral adaptation was unknown till date.

Similar to the ring tailed lemur, the Fusui langurs were seen sleeping in caves. But this adaptation was a result of deforestation. They were seen juggling between caves every two days.

Researchers observed the primates at a 104,000 acre Tsimanampesotse National Park and the Tsinjoriake Protected Area in southwestern Madagascar from 2006-2013. The behavior of the lemurs was recorded using motion detector camera traps. The movement of 11 troops of ring tailed lemur was recorded.

The team noticed that in 'gallery forests; lemurs regularly slept in canopies of tall trees, whereas in the 'spiny forests' the trees have woody stems that are layered with series of spines. These protrusions help predators to climb the trees. This study showed the cave sleeping behavior in dry spiny forest adjacent to limestone cliffs is a safe and comfortable place for these creatures. The carnivorous mammal fossa is the top predator of the lemur.

"We think cave-sleeping is something ring-tailed lemurs have been doing for a long time," she said. "The behavior may be characteristic of a deep primate heritage that goes back millions of years."

Ring-tailed lemurs are now listed as an endangered species by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's Species Survival Commission.

The study was published in the journal Madagascar Conservation and Development.