. Mammals of other lands;. Mammals. 28 THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD. Phdii, by L. Midland, '] RING-TAILED LEMUR [Nurlh FinchUf This hmur is often kept as a domestic animal^ and allotted to run about the house like a cat softest moss, have no tails. The strangest of all are two creatures called the Slender LoRis and the Slow Loris. The slender loris, which has the ordinary furry coat of the lemurs, and no tail, moves on the branches exactly as does a chameleon. Each hand or foot is slowly raised, brought, forward, and set down again. The fingers then as slowly close on the branch till
. Mammals of other lands;. Mammals. 28 THE LIVING ANIMALS OF THE WORLD. Phdii, by L. Midland, '] RING-TAILED LEMUR [Nurlh FinchUf This hmur is often kept as a domestic animal^ and allotted to run about the house like a cat softest moss, have no tails. The strangest of all are two creatures called the Slender LoRis and the Slow Loris. The slender loris, which has the ordinary furry coat of the lemurs, and no tail, moves on the branches exactly as does a chameleon. Each hand or foot is slowly raised, brought, forward, and set down again. The fingers then as slowly close on the branch till its grasp is secure. It is like a slow-working mechanical toy. Probably this is a habit, now instinctive, gained by ages of cautiously approaching insects. But the result is to give the impression that the creature is, almost an automaton. Madagascar is the main home of the lemurs, though some of the related animals are also found in Africa and in the East Indies. But the dense forests of the great island are full of these curious nocturnal beasts, of which there are so many varieties presenting very slight differences of form and habit, that naturalists have some difficulty in giving even a complete list of their species. Add to this that nearly all of them are intensely and entirely nocturnal, and the scarcity of data as to their habits is easily accounted for. When seen by us, their faces all lack expression—that is to say, the eyes, which mainly give expression, seem' entirely vacant and meaningless. But this is due to their special adaptation to seeing in the dark tropical night. By day the pupil of the eye almost disappears. If only we could also see in the dark, the eyes of the lemur might have as much expression as those of a faithful dog. The change which night makes in their general demeanour is simply miraculous. By day many of them are like hibernating animals, almost incapable of movement. When once the curtain of night has fallen, they are as active as squirrels
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