The greater dwarf lemur (''Cheirogaleus major''), or the Geoffroy's dwarf lemur, is a

lemur Lemurs ( ; from Latin ) are Strepsirrhini, wet-nosed primates of the Superfamily (biology), superfamily Lemuroidea ( ), divided into 8 Family (biology), families and consisting of 15 genera and around 100 existing species. They are Endemism, ...

that is widely distributed over the primary and secondary forests near the eastern coast of

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

. They are also found in northern parts of Madagascar. Greater dwarf lemurs live in forests and dry scrub areas. The head and body of the greater dwarf lemur can range from 167 to 264 millimeters in length, and 164 to 600 grams. Their tails can range from 195 to 310 millimeters in length.Cooper, A. 2000. "Cheirogaleus major" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web. Accessed July 25, 2012 at http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Cheirogaleus_major.html Greater dwarf lemurs are nocturnal. During the day, they sleep in nests of twigs, leaves, and grass, or hollowed sections of trees padded with dry leaves. Their diet consists mostly of fruits, flowers, and nectar. Flower nectar is an important part of the diet from November to December. Sometimes they will also eat insects and small vertebrates. During the dry seasons they will store fat in their tail and become dormant. Its fur is short, dense, grey or reddish brown, and there are dark circles of fur around the eyes. At the end of the wet season the tail will become somewhat swollen with fat. The greater dwarf lemur is preyed upon by the

ring-tailed mongoose The ring-tailed vontsira (''Galidia elegans''), locally still known as the ring-tailed mongoose, is a euplerid in the subfamily Galidiinae, a carnivoran native to Madagascar. It is the only species in the genus ''Galidia''. Classification ...

(''Galidia elegans'') during the dormant season. Other predators the Malagasy tree boa (''Boa manditra''), the

Madagascar buzzard The Madagascar buzzard (''Buteo brachypterus'') is a bird of prey which is endemic to Madagascar. It is a species from the widespread genus ''Buteo'' in the family ''Accipitridae''. Description The Madagascar buzzard is a typical old-world buzza ...

(''Buteo brachypterus''), and it is thought probably by the fossa (''Cryptoprocta ferox'') as well, since the latter preys on other lemurs.

Locomotion

The greater dwarf lemur is an arboreal quadruped, it moves along the horizontal branches with a regular gait pattern involving all four limbs. They are not agile leapers.

Mating

Mating occurs in October with births from November to February. Mothers build nests to give birth to their offspring that average in height from six to twelve meters. They generally give birth to twins. Mothers carry infants in their mouths.

Vocalization

Greater dwarf lemurs are not very vocal. They make soft calls to locate others.

Taxonomy

Between 2000 and 2009, populations of dwarf lemur around

Tamatave Toamasina (), meaning "like salt" or "salty", unofficially and in French Tamatave or in the past as Port aux prunes, is the capital of the Atsinanana region on the east coast of Madagascar on the Indian Ocean. The city is the chief seaport of the ...

, Tampira, Mahambo, Ancaya, Ambodivoangy, and Fesi Malendo were known as a separate species, the greater iron-gray dwarf lemur (''Cheirogaleus ravus''). It was described as having a

pelage A fur is a soft, thick growth of hair that covers the skin of almost all mammals. It consists of a combination of oily guard hair on top and thick underfur beneath. The guard hair keeps moisture from reaching the skin; the underfur acts as an ...

coloration that is iron-gray with brownish tones, a vague dorsal stripe, white feet, a tail with a white tip, and dark ears that are either naked or sparsely covered with hair. However, in 2009, Groeneveld ''et al.'' demonstrated genetically that ''Cheirogaleus ravus'' was a synonym of ''Cheirogaleus major'', so the greater iron-gray dwarf lemur is no longer recognized as a species.

References

Cooper, A. 2000. "Cheirogaleus major" (On-line), Animal Diversity Web.
Accessed July 24, 2012 * * {{Taxonbar, from=Q900992 Dwarf lemurs Mammals described in 1812 Taxa named by Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire