The ring-tailed lemur is a large strepsirrhine primate. It belongs to
Lemuridae, one of five lemur families. Like all lemurs, it is endemic
to Madagascar, living in the gallery forests and spiny scrubland in the
southern regions of the island. It is omnivorous, diurnal and highly
social, living in groups of up to 30 individuals. Communities are
matriarchal, a trait common among lemurs. Like other lemurs, this
species relies strongly on its sense of smell and marks its territory
with scent glands. As one of the most vocal primates, the ring-tailed
lemur utilizes numerous vocalizations such as alarm calls. Experiments
have shown that, despite the lack of a large brain, the ring-tailed
lemur can organize sequences, understand basic arithmetic operations
and preferentially select tools based on functional qualities. Despite
being listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN Red List and suffering from
habitat destruction, the ring-tailed lemur reproduces readily in
captivity and is the most populous lemur in zoos worldwide, numbering
more than 2000 individuals. It typically lives 16 to 19 years in the
wild and 27 years in captivity.
Read the rest of this article:
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ring-tailed_lemur>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
238:
Because of his advanced age, Gordian I was proclaimed Roman Emperor
along with his son Gordian II.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordian_I>
1765:
The Parliament of Great Britain passed the Stamp Act, requiring that
many printed materials in the Thirteen Colonies in British America
carry a tax stamp .
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stamp_Act_1765>
1920:
A pogrom in Shusha, Nagorno-Karabagh, by Azeris destroyed the
Armenian-populated portions of the town.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shusha_pogrom>
1933:
The Holocaust: The construction of the first Nazi concentration camp at
Dachau was completed.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dachau_concentration_camp>
1963:
Please Please Me, the first album recorded by The Beatles, was
released.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Please_Please_Me>
2006:
The remaining three Christian Peacemaker Teams hostages were rescued
from their Iraqi captors by a multinational force.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Peacemaker_hostage_crisis>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
perfusion (n):
(medicine) The introduction of a drug or nutrients through the
bloodstream in order to reach an internal organ or tissues
<http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/perfusion>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
88px67px54px
The Night has a thousand eyes,
And the Day but one;
Yet the light of
the bright world dies
With the dying sun.
The mind has a thousand eyes,
And the heart
but one;
Yet the light of a whole life dies
When love is done.
--Francis William Bourdillon
<http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Francis_William_Bourdillon>