You may see large, saucepan eyes bouncing around in the beam of light from you torch or see their big ears and bushy tails as they bounce off into the darkness. You may wake in the early hours to their ear-splitting shrieks, just like the cries of a distressed infant. These belong to the Galagos, also known as Bushbabies, one of Africa’s most endearing creatures of the night. They are often referred to in South Africa as ‘nagapies’, meaning “little night monkeys” in Afrikaans. Galagos are regarded as on of the smallest of the prosimian primate species. They are common throughout parts of Africa, but are not as easy to spot, as they are predominately nocturnal and shy little creatures.
Scientists have recently discovered that there are at least 18 species of Galagos and according to the IUCN comprises of; genus Otolemur: thick-tailed, or greater galagos (2 species), genus Euoticus: needle-clawed galagos (2 species), genus Galago: lesser galagos (14 species). In today’s #factfriday will be focusing on the Southern lesser galago (Galago moholi).
Did you know?
As previously mentioned, Bushbabies belong to the prosimian group of primates, which also includes lemurs and lorises. This group evolved before monkeys and it is thought that they became nocturnal to avoid competition with their larger primate cousins.
Seven in bed
Southern lesser galagos live in small social groups, and can be found sleeping in groups of 2-7 individuals in the day. Comprising of a female and several of her young but the males sleep separately from the females. You may have witnessed a group emerge from their nesting site and bounce off into the darkness. However, the group splits up at night when they awake, to forage alone or in very loose associations and then regroup to return to their nesting site. It is thought that they spend approximately 70% of awake time, alone.
No handshakes for me…
These little creatures are very territorial and mark their territory by urinating on their hands, yes, their hands! This allows them to spread their scent as they leap around from tree to tree. It also allows them to know which branches are safe to jump on when they move to and from their nest site. The urine soaked hands also help to improve their grip while moving about in their habitat. They also engage in ‘urine washing’. This is where they transfer the urine from their hands and feet onto other social group members during bouts of reciprocal grooming. Nevertheless, this is only one form of communication; they also communicate using up to 25 different calls and have incredible eye sight at night so can identify other individuals.
Bouncy, bouncy
This energetic little creature can clear up to 2.5m in a single jump! Thanks to their extremely powerful back leg muscles.
Grooming toe
Bushbabies have unique nails on their hands and feet, shaped similar to us humans except for their second toes which is modified to be a special grooming tool. The claw is used by the galago to groom the head area, clean the ears and restyle their neck fur.
Keep them in the wild
A recent study (2021) from an international team of scientists suggests that the popularity for keeping them as pets may have shifted the genetics within their wild populations over the span of decades. The findings from the research suggest that these changes could be detrimental for their ability to adapt as the human population increases thus the process of urbanization. The study was published in the journal Primates and was led by researchers from the United States and South Africa, including primatologist Michelle Sauther at the University of Colorado Boulder. The study found that many Bushbabies living within more than 200 miles away shared the same genetic mutations. Where individuals within the same social populations displayed a surprising amount of genetic divergence. Over representation of genes, causes an increased likelihood of inheriting genetic mutations, is usually present in small, isolated populations of species. So why is the findings from this study suggest quite the opposite?
It is believed that the illegal pet trade of Bushbabies is to blame. Individuals that are caught could be released or escape in a different area miles away. Or the ones that were pets, proved they do not make good or easy pets, are released by their owners back into the wild, far away from where they were originally captured and their social group. The southern lesser galago is listed as ‘Least concern’ which indicates they have a stable population without any current significant threats according to the IUCN ( the International Union for Conservation of Nature). However, the health of a population can be identified by their genetic diversity and the mixing up their genes too much could result in the inability to adapt to an ever changing world. Therefore a large population size may not mean a healthy, sustainable one the adorable Southern lesser galagos.
These little creatures are ones to look out for, they are incredibly cute and incredibly fascinating but are best to be kept in the wild, not as pets.
Come back next Friday for more interesting facts, #factfriday !
Resources
Metlholo A. Phukuntsi, Morne Du Plessis, Desiré L. Dalton, Raymond Jansen, Michelle L. Sauther, Frank P. Cuozzo, Antoinette Kotze. Population and genetic structure of a male-dispersing strepsirrhine, Galago moholi (Primates, Galagidae), from northern South Africa, inferred from mitochondrial DNA. Primates, 2021; DOI: 10.1007/s10329-021-00912-y
