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The Evolution of Exudativory in Primates pp 141–153Cite as

Seasonality in Gum and Honeydew Feeding in Gray Mouse Lemurs

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Part of the book series: Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects ((DIPR))

Abstract

Exudates represent an important component of the natural diets of ­small-bodied primates. For mouse lemurs, the impact of forest type and seasonal predictability on gum consumption has recently been intensively investigated. The goal of our study was to extend our knowledge regarding the seasonality of feeding ecology of Microcebus murinus, first, to investigate the relative consumption of gum and hemipteran honeydew, a sap-derived product, and, second to assess respective foraging strategies in a highly seasonal and quite predictable environment. We hypothesized that (1) food resources vary according to the season, (2) gum and honeydew represent keystone food resources during periods of food scarcity, and (3) lemurs revisit productive stationary feeding sites during the period of food scarcity. We studied gray mouse lemurs in the dry deciduous ­forest of the Ankarafantsika National Park in northwestern Madagascar. We radio-collared seven M. murinus females and performed focal observations on their feeding behavior during the end of the dry and the beginning of the rainy season. During the dry season, the period of food scarcity, mouse lemurs mainly consumed gum and honeydew. Subjects revisited the same feeding sites within the same and over several nights. During the rainy season, the period of food abundance, lemurs consumed mainly nectar from shrub flowers and did not show gum or honeydew feeding. To our knowledge, the consumption of honeydew by lemurs is a unique case of sap feeding by proxy in a mammal. Further investigations will focus on the characterization of the ecological consequences of such an interaction between mouse lemurs, hemipteran larvae, and host plants.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the Commission Tripartite of the Malagasy government, the Département des Eaux et Forêts, and the Association pour la Gestion des Aires for their permission to work in Ampijoroa. We also thank Dr. Daniel Rakotondravony, Faculté des Sciences, Université d’Antananarivo for logistic support. We thank the Durrell Wildlife Preservation Trust for the climatic data. For help in plant identification, we thank Hiroki Sato, University of Kyoto, Japan. For assistance in the field, we thank Dr. Blanchard Randrianambinina, Dr. Solofo Rasoloharijaona, Dr. Marina Scheumann, and Christian Schopf. The study complies with the current laws of Madagascar and was financially supported by the DAAD and financial support for women from the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut fuer Zoologie, Tieraerztliche Hochschule Hannover, Buenteweg 17, Hannover, 30559, Germany

    Marine Joly-Radko

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  1. Marine Joly-Radko
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  2. Elke Zimmermann
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Correspondence to Marine Joly-Radko .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Physical Therapy, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, 15282, Pennsylvania, USA

    Anne M. Burrows

  2. School of Human Evolution &, Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, 85287-2402, Arizona, USA

    Leanne T. Nash

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Joly-Radko, M., Zimmermann, E. (2010). Seasonality in Gum and Honeydew Feeding in Gray Mouse Lemurs. In: Burrows, A., Nash, L. (eds) The Evolution of Exudativory in Primates. Developments in Primatology: Progress and Prospects. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6661-2_7

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