Lesser Bushbaby
Lesser bushbabies locomote mainly by vertical clinging and leaping. Click image for larger version.
Bushbabies, or galagos, are small, nocturnal primates which range in size from cat-sized to mouse sized. They are found in the forests and woodlands of Africa south of the Sahara. In some of these areas (i.e. the range of the lesser bushbaby (Galago moholi)) nighttime winter temperatures can drop to as low as 22 Fahrenheit! In Africa, up to four species of bushbaby may occupy the same area of forest, feeding on a combination of insects, fruit and tree gum. Each species, however, utilizes a different layer of the forest or specializes on a particular food, so that they don't compete with each other or with the monkeys which make up the "day shift."
The animal's loud vocalizations, from which the term bushbaby is derived, have proven to be the means by which the many different species have been identified. Only a decade ago, less than half a dozen species of bushbaby were known, but currently 16 species are recognized, and some experts feel that there may be as many as 40.
Weighing around seven ounces, the lesser bushbaby's coat is gray with yellow-tinged underparts. Their fur is dense, wooly, longish, and slightly wavy. Their large ears are crossed by four transverse ridges and can be independently and simultaneously bent back and forth and wrinkled downward from the tips at will. This furling and unfurling of the ears is occurring constantly when the animals are investigating something, and produce a very lovable, quizzical expression in the animals.
Some bushbabies, including the lesser bushbaby, are vertical clingers and leapers, springing up to 15 feet in a single bound as they travel through the forest from vertical support to vertical support. Ground travel in this species is accomplished like the sifaka, by a series of kangaroo-like bipedal hops. Other species of bushbabies, such as the much larger thick-tailed bushbaby, although certainly capable of leaping, seem to prefer to run on all fours along the tops of branches.