FromLatinlemurēs(“spirits of the dead”). The name was originally given to thered slender loris (thenLemur tardigradus) in 1754 by Carl Linnaeus. According to Linnaeus, the name was selected because of the nocturnal activity and slow movements of the red slender loris. In 1758, Linnaeus added, among others, thering-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) to thegenusLemur. All other species, including the red slender loris, were eventually moved to othergenera. In time, the word became the colloquial name for all primates endemic to Madagascar.[1]
2018 November 9, “Red alert: New lemurs join zoo conspiracy”, inOregon Zoo[2], retrieved5 November 2019:
"Lemurs are naturally very social," said Mukobi. "Wildlemurs live in big family groups, and different species do really well together. Plus, the newlemur habitat is quite large, so each family group can have their own space when they choose to."
2025 July 5, Mike Carter, “Deep in the island ark”, inFT Weekend, Travel, page 6:
Tucker-Brown explained howlemurs—like much of the “stranded” flora and fauna of Madagascar—are effectively living fossils. Belonging to a primate group called prosimians,lemurs were evolutionarily superseded by monkeys on mainland Africa 35mn years ago and driven to near-extinction.
^A. R. Dunkel with J. S. Zijlstra and C. P. Groves (2011-2012), “Giant Rabbits, Marmosets, and British Comedies: Etymology of Lemur Names, Part 1”, inLemur News[1], volume16, archived fromthe original on6 November 2016, pages64–70.
Taxonomy of lemurs on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Lemuriformes on Wikispecies.Wikispecies
Category:Lemuriformes on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons.jpg)
