Galago moholi

Geographic Range

Galago moholi is found in southern Africa from Angola to Tanzania, including Zimbabwe, the Transvaal, and parts of Burundi and Rwanda.

• Biogeographic Regions
• ethiopian ethiopian
  • native native

Habitat

South African galagos inhabit semi-arid woodlands, savanna woodlands, gallery forests, and the edges of wooded areas. They are often associated with Acacia trees, the exudates of which are dietary staple. South African galagos can be found at all levels of a forest canopy, often resting and breeding in the holes of Acacia trees and the hollowed out trunks of mopane ( Colophospermum mopane ) trees.

• Habitat Regions
• temperate temperate
• tropical tropical
• terrestrial terrestrial

• Terrestrial Biomes
• savanna or grassland savanna or grassland
• forest forest

• Other Habitat Features
• riparian riparian

Physical Description

South African galagos are small prosimians with a head and body length of 14 to 17 cm. Males are larger, from 160 to 255 g, females are from 142 to 229 g. They have grey to light brown fur that lightens and takes on a yellowish tinge on the limbs and ventral surface. They have extremely large ears that have four transverse ridges that allow the tips to be bent down almost all the way to the base. The ears can be moved independently and are thought to be among the largest ears, proportionate to body size, of all primates. South African galagos have huge orange eyes that are surrounded by a dark mask of fur. The tail is an average of 11 to 28 cm and is dark in color. Galago moholi has the tooth comb and grooming claw typical of Strepsirrhini . In their ear canal the tympanic ring is fused with the lateral wall, like other galagos and lorises . They have longer hindlimbs than forelimbs with an intermembral index of 54 which makes them well adapted for vertical clinging and leaping. South African galagos have a chromosome number of 38.

• Other Physical Features
• endothermic endothermic
• homoiothermic
• bilateral symmetry bilateral symmetry

• Sexual Dimorphism
• sexes alike
• male larger

Reproduction

South African galagos have a polygynous mating system with territory of dominant males overlapping that of several females. Females have a brief estrous period, lasting 1 to 3 days, during which males become highly competitive, increasing their home range, body weight, and testes volume. Males appear to fall into two distinct mating strategy groups, larger and more dominant males who monopolize females with repeated matings and smaller males who are more opportunistic. Larger males procure more successful matings. Female G. moholi exhibit estrus swellings and do not have synchronized fertility.

• Mating System
• polygynous polygynous
• polygynandrous (promiscuous) polygynandrous (promiscuous)

South African galago females and males become sexually mature around 300 days old. There are two mating seasons a year corresponding to births between January and February and between October and November. South African galagos may give birth to 2 sets of twins a year. Females construct nests in which to give birth to and raise their offspring. They may make their own, open-topped nest, or take over an uninhabited bird nest, mat of foliage, or tree hollow. After a 121 to 124 day gestation period, females give birth to offspring weighing approximately 10 grams that have their eyes open and are furred. Females give birth to a single offspring at their first pregnancy, then produce twins in subsequent litters. The mother carries the babies by the scruff of their necks for the first 50 days. Weaning occurs after approximately 93 days.

• Key Reproductive Features
• iteroparous iteroparous
• seasonal breeding seasonal breeding
• gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
• sexual sexual
• viviparous viviparous

The young are born furred and have open eyes at birth. They stay in the nest for the first 10 to 11 days. In captivity the babies are capable of clinging to branches within the first day and begin walking in a few days. Females nurse their offspring for about 11 weeks though young may begin to catch insects at 4 weeks of age. Mothers park their infants in tree forks or tangles of vegetation while they forage. The offspring will cling quietly and unmoving for up to three hours, being checked on occasionally by the mother. If the infant is in danger or left alone too long it will emit distress calls which quickly summon the mother. The female will carry the offspring to a safer location if she senses threat. After 10 months young South African galagos reach sexual maturity at which point males will emigrate. Females often stay with their mothers longer. Males do not directly participate in caring for the offspring.

• Parental Investment
• precocial precocial
• pre-fertilization
  • provisioning
  • protecting
    • female
• pre-hatching/birth
  • provisioning
    • female
  • protecting
    • female
• pre-weaning/fledging
  • provisioning
    • female
  • protecting
    • female
• pre-independence
  • provisioning
    • female
  • protecting
    • female
• post-independence association with parents

Lifespan/Longevity

South African galagos have a maximum recorded lifespan of 16.6 years.

Behavior

South African galagos live in small social groups. They can be found sleeping in groups of 2 to 7 during the day. These groups are typically comprised of a female and several of her young. At night the groups separate to forage independently. South African galagos spend approximately 70% of their waking time alone. The ranges of females are related to age. Females with larger age differences are much more likely to have overlapping ranges. Aggressive territorial behavior may be seen at range borders. Dominance interactions of males are also based on age. Dominant males are the only ones that defend territories and are often the largest and most aggressive. Juvenile males emigrate from the natal range, traveling a few kilometers either east or west over a few successive nights. When they encounter another member of their species they will smell and touch noses after which they may groom each other or display aggressive behavior.

• Key Behaviors
• arboreal arboreal
• scansorial
• saltatorial saltatorial
• nocturnal nocturnal
• motile motile
• solitary solitary
• territorial territorial
• social social
• dominance hierarchies dominance hierarchies

Home Range

Dominant males have territories that overlap those of several females. The average home range for a male is 11 ha and a female is 6.7 ha.

Communication and Perception

While generally living in small family groups, South African galagos communicate with one another over long distances using loud calls. These calls are thought to maintain contact within a group, advertise territory, or serve as an alarm. If an alarm call is heard other South African galagos join in and even mob the potential predator. Young call to their mothers using a clicking sound. South African galagos also employ olfactory modes of communication by "urine washing" their hands and feet. This behavior is more common in dominant males. It is also possible that the urine on the foot pads helps them to grip branches more easily. They also use allogrooming in social interactions.

• Communication Channels
• visual visual
• tactile tactile
• acoustic acoustic
• chemical chemical

• Other Communication Modes
• scent marks scent marks

• Perception Channels
• visual visual
• tactile tactile
• acoustic acoustic
• chemical chemical

Food Habits

South African galagos eat exclusively arthropods and tree exudates. Arthropods, including butterflies, moths and beetles, comprise the majority of the diet. Acacia gums also play a large role in the diet, especially those from Acacia karroo , Acacia tortilis , and Acacia nilotica . Plant exudates are scraped from the tree using the tooth-scraper on the lower mandible on nightly visits. Gums are released when moth and beetle larvae bore beneath the bark of the Acacia trees. Gums are available year round and are often relied upon more heavily during the winter months or in times of reduced insect availability. Galago moholi posses physical adaptations for eating plant gums, including a rough, narrow tongue capable of harvesting gums from insect holes and tree crevices, well developed tooth-scrapers and a proportionally large cecum and hindgut to digest complex carbohydrates. Galago moholi is a caeco-ansal fermenter with the cecum, proximal colon, and ansa coli each providing distinct chambers for fermentation. Gums get digested in the fluid phase and get fermented more quickly that other, more high quality, foods like insects. This allows South African galagos to consume a relatively nutrient poor diet.

• Primary Diet
• carnivore carnivore
  • insectivore insectivore
• herbivore herbivore
  • eats sap or other plant foods

• Animal Foods
• reptiles
• insects

• Plant Foods
• sap or other plant fluids

Predation

South African galagos are preyed on by large birds, including eagles and owls, as well as snakes, mongooses, and civets and genets. They protect themselves from predation by nesting in tree holes and being active at night. Research suggests that Galago moholi lack seasonal torpor (heterothermy) to maximize reproductive success in a high predator environment. South African galagos avoid predation with warning calls among group members and agile leaping.

• Anti-predator Adaptations
• cryptic cryptic

Ecosystem Roles

South African galagos eat insects and provide food for large birds of prey and mid-sized mammalian predators.

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

South African galagos benefit humans economically by bringing researchers and ecotourists to regions they inhabit. They may reduce insect pest populations.

• Positive Impacts
• ecotourism ecotourism
• research and education
• controls pest population

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

There are no known adverse effects of Galago moholi on humans.

Conservation Status

South African galagos are on Appendix II of CITES which indicates they are currently at low risk for extinction and the IUCN Red List indicates they have a stable population without major threats. In fact, the range of G. moholi is expanding in some areas.

Additional Links

Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Therien Poynter (author), University of Oregon, Stephen Frost (editor, instructor), University of Oregon, Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.

References

Bearder, S., R. Martin. 1980. Acacia Gum and Its Use by Bushbabies, Galago senegalensis (Primates:Lorisidae). International Journal of Primatology , 1/2: 103-128.

Bearer, S., T. Butynski, M. Hoffmann. 2008. "2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species" (On-line). Galago moholi. Accessed February 16, 2009 at http://www.iucnredlist.org .

Caton, J., M. Lawes, C. Cunningham. 2000. Digestive strategy of the south-east African lesser bushbaby, Galago moholi.. Comparative biochemistry and physiology. Part A, Molecular & integrative physiology , 127/1: 39-48.

Fleagle, J. 1999. Primate Adaptation and Evolution, Second Edit. . San Diego: Academic Press.

Gron, K. 2008. "Primate Factsheets: Lesser bushbaby (Galago) Behavior" (On-line). Accessed February 21, 2009 at http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/lesser_bushbaby/behav .

Gron, K. 2008. "Primate Factsheets: Lesser bushbaby (Galago) Conservation" (On-line). Accessed February 21, 2009 at http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/lesser_bushbaby/cons .

Gron, K. 2008. "Primate Factsheets: Lesser bushbaby (Galago) Taxonomy, Morphology, & Ecology." (On-line). Accessed February 21, 2009 at http://pin.primate.wisc.edu/factsheets/entry/lesser_bushbaby .

Harcourt, C., S. Bearder. 1989. A Comparison of Galago moholi in South Africa with Galago zanzibaricus in Kenya. International Journal of Primatology , 10/1: 35-45.

Mzilikazi, 2006. Lack of torpor in free-ranging southern lesser galagos, Galago moholi: Ecological and physiological considerations. Folia primatologica , 77/6: 465-476.

Nowak, R. 1999. Walker's Mammals of The World, 6th Edition . Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press.

Pullen, 2004. Male mating behaviour and reproductive success in the lesser Galago (Galago moholi). Folia primatologica , 75/Suppl. 1: 89.

Pullen, S., S. Bearder, A. Dixson. 2000. Preliminary Observations on Sexual Behavior and the Mating System in Free-ranging Lesser Galagos (Galago moholi). American Journal of Primatology , 51: 79-88.

de Magalhaes, J., A. Budovski, G. Lehmann,Fraifeld, V., Church, G. M., J. Costa, J, Y. Li, V. Fraifeld. 2009. The Human Ageing Genomic Resources: online databases and tools for biogerontologists. Aging Cell , 8/1: 65-72.

2009. "Lesser Bushbaby" (On-line). Duke University Primate Center. Accessed January 21, 2009 at http://primatecenter.duke.edu/animals/lesserbushbaby/ .

2009. "Southern lesser bush baby, South African galago Galago moholi" (On-line). BBC- Science & Nature- Wildfacts. Accessed February 21, 2009 at http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/wildfacts/factfiles/329.shtml .