The Loss of the Lemur: The Road to Extinction

Hunting 

Hunting is also a problem facing lemurs. Although hunting lemurs was banned in 1964 due to the detrimental effect it had on the lemur population, poaching remains a large problem. As one of the largest lemurs (they can grow up to 4m in length), they are poached for their coats and meat. Again however, it is the poverty in Madagascar that is the driving force behind much of this poaching. Lack of education on the dire outcomes it has on the animals and the environment is also a crucial factor and a significant cause for the depletion in numbers of black-and-white ruffed lemurs.

Why is this a problem?

The Madagascan ecosystem is unique to the island, much like the ecosystem of the Galapagos Islands being unique there. After Madagascar split from mainland Africa millions of years ago, animals evolved and adapted in different ways producing species endemic to the island. Lemurs are a type of prosimian (an early primate) and have adapted brilliantly to their environment. As tree-dwellers, they have evolved to have long tails providing them with balance, a fantastic sense of smell and an extremely loud call allows them to be audible through the loud noises of the rainforest. They also have the ability to keep themselves cool and to warm themselves. They have white backs which repel the heat should they need to cool down and their black bellies allow them to sunbath to soak up the heat. It would be a sore loss should this lemur become extinct. They also have research value being an early primate. The loss of such a species would also detrimentally harm the ecosystem they live in, certain species of insects could become overpopulated and their already rare predator the fossa could become even rarer.

In-Situ Conservation

Although the lemur was the first animal to be reintroduced to Madagascar, in-situ conservation has had limited success. The reason mainly being is that the threat to the species remains there. Deforestation is happening at a lightening rate and habitats are being lost all the time, poaching, although illegal still goes on and undermines all the work done to help the lemurs. It was also noted that whilst conserving one species of lemur it meant other species of lemur, even other animals and plants, were neglected and they began to become worse off. Therefore, in-situ conservation has begun to feature on conserving the area rather than focusing on individual species. This has many benefits, not only does it help to conserve the lemurs but also other types of animals and also species of plants that would have been destroyed by the slash-and-burn agricultural technique.

Ex-Situ conservation

Captive breeding programs have been instigated around the world and as a result, there is quite a healthy population of black-and-white ruffed lemurs in captivity and therefore there is a great genetic variety. Cultivating and maintaining genetic variety is one of the most important parts of ex-situ conservation. It is important that zoos ensure that their breeding programs are sensible in making sure there is genetic variety. A program called SPARKS (single population animal record keeping system) is used by zoos to analyse genetic variety and populations of captive animals.

Woburn Safari Park has kept black-and-white rugged lemurs since 1966 and has used captive breeding programs to ensure a healthy population of lemurs in the zoo. They are not currently engaging in a breeding program as they already have a full group. This means they have a restrictive gene pool and must take a break from breeding for a few years in which time they will take in another female. Because of this, all females must be kept on contraceptives to prevent any pregnancies. This presents an ethical issue and results in the idea of implications of ex-situ conservation. Many might argue that the use of contraceptives is unethical as it disrupts the natural life of the lemur. In nature, the lemur would not be prevented from becoming pregnant. However, the zoos believe it is vital that inbreeding does not occur to maintain gene diversity.

Breeding programs are not the only way in which zoos such as Woburn are able to help endangered animals. Education is a great tool, and if well established, it can make an enormous difference in how threats to animals and ecosystems are perceived by the public. In addition, it is possible to research animal behaviour a lot easier in captivity and look for replications of this behaviour in the wild. Captivity can provide a good basis for in-situ conservation. The money made from ticket entries is also very important because without it, it would be difficult to fund any type of conservation.

There is the ethical issue however of keeping the animals in captivity. One might say that they do not have the same way of life; they are unable to lead a natural way of living, interact naturally and are exploited. However, Sarah Joy, a keeper at Woburn said that, “if we weren’t conserving the species of animal, left to its own current conditions, we would no longer have black-and-white ruffed lemurs. We try our best to re-create natural habitats here at Woburn, and give the animals the best possible treatment.” She then added, “In captivity, black-and-white ruffed lemurs are kept in the same social sized groups, consisting of the same hierarchy’s as in the wild. The only difference is that here [at Woburn], the animals come into a lot of human contact.” One must also remember that due to the difficulties of ex-situ conservation, captivity is one of the only ways of maintaining this species for future years.

Other Campaigns

Madagascar was the focus of the sixth EAZA Annual Conservation campaign (of which Woburn raised money for). The campaign was officially launched on Wednesday 4th October 2006 and was closed on 12th September 2007. The campaign raised an amazing €594,748.96 for conservation projects on the island. The campaign had four main targets:

• To raise public awareness

• To collect funds for conservation projects on the island (goal of €500,000)

• To promote eco-tourism to Madagascar

• To promote twinning between EAZA members and National Parks and other protected areas

Alternatives

Although ex-situ conservation is by far the most common, and at this stage most effective method of conservation there are many alternatives. One such has been mentioned already in this report and is through the conservation of the entire area in which the black-and-white ruffed lemurs live in. At present however there is a great risk in reintroducing lemurs into their natural habitat whilst the threat of deforestation and hunting remains. Education would be the key to constraining and eliminating the risk. USAID is educating local communities about the dangers of slash-and-burn farming to the environment. Through training centres, farmer-to-farmer approaches and support to local farming associations, rural communities learn the connections between their livelihood and a healthy forest ecosystem. USAID is also trying to providing alternatives for rural farmers through sustainable techniques such as agricultural diversification and intensification to increase crop yield and food security. By providing these services USAID is helping to reduce the rate of tavy, the slash-and-burn farming that is destroying the lemur’s habitat. Despite this, conservationists all over the world, including Adele Clegg at Woburn wish to see a total ban on deforestation in Madagascar to further protect the species.

IVF, in vitro fertilisation, is another potential alternative to aid breeding programs in captivity, helping to overcome possible infertility and to strengthen the genetic diversity of the species. In 2008, Taronga Western Plains Zoo staff and international reproductive experts from Berlin’s Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research achieved a world first by successfully fertilising a Black Rhinoceros egg. An egg was collected from one of the Zoo’s Black Rhinoceros females – Rocket and fertilised with sperm from a Black Rhino male to create an embryo. This was an amazing advance in terms of conservation. If this can be done with a black rhino, it can be assumed that such a technique could also be used to help lemurs too. Not only can IVF help to overcome fertility issues but also it will allow other benefits, such as those stated by Dr. Thomas Hildebrandt.

"Importantly it will now enable us to save the genome of critically endangered animals, either Zoo-based or in the wild. We can then transport these genes anywhere and insert them back into the population at any time, with the suitable techniques, therefore giving us a real chance to try and reverse extinction rates for some of the most endangered animals on our planet."

With new techniques being researched and increased education, the future could hold many surprises for the lemur. One must not however forget the frightening fact that over the last 27 years their population has reduced by 80%. The struggle against extinction for the black-and-white ruffed lemur remains constant.