Brown greater galago

Brown greater galago

Large-eared greater galago, Thick-tailed galago

Kingdom
Phylum
Subphylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
SPECIES
Otolemur crassicaudatus
Weight
1-2
2.2-4.4
kglbs
kg lbs 
Length
297-373
11.7-14.7
mminch
mm inch 

The brown greater galago (Otolemur crassicaudatus ), also known as the large-eared greater galago or thick-tailed galago, is a nocturnal primate, the largest in the family of galagos. As opposed to smaller galago species it would climb, walk or run rather than leap.

Appearance

This species has a rounded head with a short, wide snout, very large ears that can be moved independently and relatively large forward binocular eyes. They possess flat thickened skin pads at the ends of their fingers and toes for grasping limbs. The fingers are long and toes are flattened with flattened nails. The dentition formula is I 2/2, C 1/1, P3 3/3, M3/3.

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The thick fur is highly variable in color, depending on the subspecies: O. c. crassicaudatus exhibits dorsal pelage ranging from buff to gray extending to the face, flanks and limbs. The ventral fur is cream colored, and the tail has a darker tip. The hands and feet are darkened except on the digits. O. c. kirkii exhibits fur ranging from brown to grey on the dorsal surfaces. Ventrally, the fur is cream to yellow colored. The tail is usually light brown in this subspecies and the feet and hands lack darkening pattern.

The brown greater galago has a head-and-body length of 26 to 47 cm (32 cm on average), a tail length of 29 to 55 cm, and a weight of 0.5 to 2 kg. The brown greater galago exhibits sexual size dimorphism with males being larger than the females. This is due to bimaturism, a longer period of growth in the male, on average 84.5 more days. While males and females galagos grow at the same rate, this longer growth period results in males averaging 16% more body mass than females. On average females weigh 1.2 kg (2.6 lb), and males 1.5 kg (3.3 lb).

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Distribution

Geography

This species is common in Southern and East Africa. The largest populations are found in Angola, Tanzania, southern Kenya and the coast of Somalia. The brown greater galago lives in tropical and subtropical forest, preferring riverine and coastal forest, but it can also be found in the woodland savannah. The subspecies display different ranges: O. c. crassidautus is only found in the KwaZulu-Natal region. O. c. kirkii is found from Massangena north to Vila Coutinho, Mozambique and Malawi.

Brown greater galago habitat map

Climate zones

Brown greater galago habitat map
Brown greater galago

Habits and Lifestyle

The brown greater galago is a nocturnal, arboreal animal. During the day, it rests 5 to 12 meters above the ground in a dense tangle of creepers or in the hollow of a tree, rarely on an exposed branch. Female galagos will make nests, leafy platforms with foliage above to shelter their young. An individual galago may have several sleeping sites throughout its home range. At night, it emerges to forage for food. It moves quadrupedally through the trees or bush. This species is capable of short jumps from tree to tree when necessary. Its diet consists of fruit (like berries, figs), seeds, acacia gum, flowers, insects, slugs, and even reptiles, small birds and mammals. An individual galago on average spends 50% of its time each night traveling and only about 20% of its time foraging. It will often follow the same patrol pathway every night. Galago lifespan in captivity is 18 years or more. It is likely that life expectancy in the wild is lower.

Seasonal behavior

Diet and Nutrition

Mating Habits

MATING BEHAVIOR
PREGNANCY DURATION
133 days
BABY CARRYING
2 to 3

Population

Conservation

The brown greater galago is listed as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The species is thought to be common in well managed protected areas. The only major threat to the species is hunting for bushmeat. Habitat fragmentation is increasing across their range, with sugar cane and forestry in South Africa being a main cause.

References

1. Brown greater galago Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_greater_galago
2. Brown greater galago on The IUCN Red List site - https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/15643/17963699

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