Northern Giant Mouse Lemur

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

iNorthern Giant Mouse Lemur
Conservation status
Vulnerable (VU)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Primates Family: Cheirogaleidae Genus: Mirza Species: M. zaza
Binomial name
Mirza zaza Kappeler & Roos, 2005

The Northern Giant Mouse Lemur (Mirza zaza) was discovered to be a species in 2005 by Kappeler et al.^[1] from the German primates centre and the University of Göttingen. Before, both populations of giant mouse lemurs were believed to belong to one species. The Northern Giant Mouse Lemurs are small nocturnal lemurs endemic to Madagascar. They weigh about 300 grams, have a long bushy tail and relatively small ears. Their large testicles are an indication of their promiscuous copulation system.

[edit] Etymology

The name "zaza" means children in Malagasy. Kappeler et al.^[1] choose this name because it refers to the fact that the Northern Giant Mouse Lemur is the smaller of the two giant mouse lemur species and also because they wished to emphasize the responsibility of the current generation of Malagasy children for the conservation of Malagasy animals for future generations.

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b} P.M. Kappeler et al.: A New Mirza Species Primate Report 71, July 2005 (PDF)