Two baby lemurs of the species " Maki vari roux " were born recently in the Singapore zoo, officials announced on Thursday, an exceptional litter for one of the most endangered species on the planet.
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The last birth of a Red Vari, a primate endemic to Madagascar, at the Singapore zoo dates back more than a decade, said the Singapore Wildlife Reserve. The arrival of the twins, who have not yet been given names, is " really special " because primates only breed once a year, the source said.
Critically endangered
Red Varis are recognizable by their characteristic rust color, with black face, hands, feet and tail, as well as a distinctive white patch on the head. The last primate of this species to be born in the Singapore Zoo is Bosco, the father of the twins, eleven years ago. The mother, Minnie, eight, arrived in Singapore from a Japanese zoo in 2016.
Although baby lemurs were born earlier this year, they only became an attraction recently, as the zoo had been closed for several months due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Threatened among others by hunting and logging, the Red variety maki are classified as “ critically endangered ” on the red list of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Of the 107 species of lemurs remaining in Madagascar, some 103 are threatened, including 33 "critically endangered" - the last step before " extinction in the wild ", warned last month the Reserve of the fauna and flora of Singapore.