Ring-tailed Lemur Facts For Kids - Animal Fact Guide

Found only in the southern part of Madagascar in the dry forest and bush, the ring-tailed lemur is a large, vocal primate with brownish-gray fur and a distinctive tail with alternating black and white rings.

The ring-tailed lemur is a large, vocal primate with a long striped tail. Photo by Musat / iStock.com.

Male and female ring-tailed lemurs are roughly the same size, measuring about 42.5 cm (1.4 ft.) from head to rump and weighing roughly 2.25 kg (5 lb.).

Climbing and Jumping

Ring-tailed lemurs are adept at climbing and jumping. They move easily from branch to branch. Their long bushy tails cannot grip, but they do help them balance.

Ring-tailed lemurs are adept at leaping from branch to branch. Photo by jez_bennett / iStock.com.

On the Ground

Ring-tailed lemurs spend a third of their time on the ground foraging for food.

When the lemurs travel over ground, they keep their tails in the air to ensure everyone in the group is in sight and stays together.

When the lemurs travel over ground, they keep their tails in the air. Photo by Bkamprath / iStock.com

What Ring-tailed Lemurs Eat

Ring-tailed lemurs forage for leaves, flowers, bark, sap, and small invertebrates to eat.

Social Life

Highly social creatures, ring-tailed lemurs live in groups averaging 17 members. Their society is female-dominant, and a group will often contain multiple breeding females.

Ring-tailed lemurs are highly social animals. Photo by HenkBentlage / iStock.com.

How Ring-tailed Lemurs Communicate

Aside from using visual cues, ring-tailed lemurs also communicate via scent and vocalizations. They mark their territory by scent.

A male lemur will also engage in stink fights during mating seasons, wiping his tail with the scent glands on his wrists and waving it at another male while staring menacingly.

Eventually one male will back down and run away.

Vocally, ring-tailed lemurs have several different alarms calls that alert members to danger.

Ring-tailed Lemur Reproduction

Female ring-tailed lemurs reproduce starting at 3 years of age, generally giving birth to one baby a year, though twins are possible.

When born, a ring-tailed lemur baby weighs less than 100 g (3 oz.). The newborn is carried on its mother’s chest for 1-2 weeks and then is carried on her back.

Ring-tailed lemur mothers carry their young on their backs. Photo by Enjoylife2 / iStock.com.

At 2 weeks, the baby starts eating solid food and begins venturing out on its own. But the juvenile is not fully weaned until 5 months of age.

Ring-tailed lemurs live up to 20 years in the wild.

They have several predators, including fossas (mammals related to the mongoose), Madagascar Harrier-hawks, Madagascar buzzards, Madagascar ground boas, civets, and domestic cats and dogs.

Conservation Status

Ring-tailed lemurs are considered endangered by the IUCN Red List. The main threat to their population is habitat destruction. Much of their habitat is being converted to farmland or burned for the production of charcoal.

However, the ring-tailed lemur is popular in zoos, and they do comparatively well in captivity and reproduce regularly.

Ring-tailed lemurs are considered endangered by the IUCN Red List. Photo by Rvb, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

What You Can Do to Help

You can help ring-tailed lemurs by contributing to the Lemur Conservation Foundation through volunteer work or donations. The WWF also provides the opportunity to adopt a lemur. The money donated goes to help establish and manage parks and protected areas in Madagascar.

Ring-tailed Lemur Range

The ring-tailed lemur is found only in the southern part of Madagascar in the dry forest and bush.

Ring-tailed Lemur Resources

• Duke University Lemur Center – Ring-tailed Lemur
• National Geographic – Ring-Tailed Lemur
• IUCN Red List – Lemur catta

Quick Fact Sheet

Common Name(s): Ring-tailed Lemur

Scientific Name: Lemur catta

Animal Type: mammal

Size: 42.5 cm (1.4 ft.) long; Tail: 60 cm (24 in.)

Weight: 2.25 kg (5 lb.)

Lifespan: Up to 20 years

Conservation Status: Endangered

About the Author

P.A. Smith is a middle school Language Arts teacher. He is also a contributing editor of My House Rabbit.

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