Twin baby lemurs born at Mogo Zoo are blissfully unaware how important they are to the future of their species.
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Black-and-white ruffed lemurs are critically endangered on their island home of Madagascar but, in Mogo, they are living the dream.
Born during the early hours of October 6, the yet to be named and sexed twins have been introduced to the public under the watchful eye of their mum, Tame.
The young are completely dependent on their mum for the first four months of their life, and Tame has already proven her mothering skills are nothing short of spectacular.
Animal operations manager Paul Whitehorn says Tame and her partner Itasi are being great parents.
“The youngsters are becoming so active and are a delight to watch,” he said.
Unfortunately, in the wild the black-and-white ruffed lemur’s future is bleak. Classified as critically endangered, the principal threat to the lemurs remaining in the wild is habitat loss due to slash-and-burn agriculture, logging and mining.
As well, they are hunted by poachers for their meat.
Endemic to the island of Madagascar, the black-and-white lemur is the only diurnal primate species to build a nest.
The twins are on display to the public daily.
To cap off a stellar month, Mogo Zoo has also taken out the Bronze award in the Tourist Attraction category of the 2012 NSW State Tourism awards held in Sydney last Thursday night.