Phaner pallescens
Creators: name: Russell A. Mittermeier
name: Anthony B. Rylands
name: Don E. Wilson
Publisher: name: Lynx Edicions
Year: 2013
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Mammalia
Primates
Cheirogaleidae
Phaner
Phaner pallescens

description: 29.
Pale Fork-marked Lemur
Phaner pallescens
French: Phaner pale / German: Westlicher Gabelstreifenmaki / Spanish: Lémur de orejas ahorquilladas palido
Other common names: Pale Fork-crowned Lemur, Western Fork-marked Lemur
Taxonomy. Phaner furcifer pallescens Groves & Tattersall, 1991,
Madagascar, Tabika (22°10'S, 44° 15’ FE).
There is an apparently distinct population from the far south, known only from field observations. In addition, the single available museum specimen from Soalala differs from those from further south, being larger in size and with a shorter tail (i.e. equal to the length of the head-body length). Monotypic.
Distribution. W & SW Madagascar along a narrow strip of forests from the latitude of Toliara just S of the Fiherenana River (including Mikea Forest), N as far as Soalala.
Descriptive notes. Head—body 23-29 cm, tail 29-37 cm; weight 333 g. The Pale Forkmarked Lemur is the palest and possibly the smallest of the fork-marked lemurs. It is also notable for its broad muzzle and small teeth. Upper body is a light fawnish-gray with a silvery sheen, and the underside is whitish to pale yellowish. The crown fork and dorsal midline stripe are poorly defined, although the stripe does reach the rump. The tail itself is darkened for one-half to three-quarters ofits terminal length. Hands and feet are only slightly darkened.
Habitat. Secondary lowland tropical dry deciduous forest from sea level to 800 m. The Pale Fork-marked Lemur can adapt to exotic tree plantations.
Food and Feeding. The Pale Fork-marked Lemur has an unusual diet with a high percentage of tree exudates. At Kirindy Forest, most of the exudates eaten come from two species of Terminalia (Combretaceae) trees. Apparently, this food provides a good source of protein, to the point where invertebrate prey is not sought to the same degree that it is by other cheirogaleids. Females dominate males at feeding sites.
Breeding. Reproduction of the Pale Fork-marked Lemuris highly seasonal and limited to a few weeks per year. Mating occurs in October-November (although early studies of reproductive behavior of species of Phaner suggest a much earlier onset of mating activities). One offspring is born from late January to early March. Reproductive rates are low, with an average of only 0-3 offspring/female/year. A study on paternity in Kirindy Forest showed that four of seven offspring were likely sired by extrapair males. Both sexes seem to play an active role in obtaining extrapair copulations. Generally, fork-marked lemurs have been reported to carry their young around, with the infants clinging to their mother’s fur during active periods.
Activity patterns. The Pale Fork-marked Lemur is nocturnal and arboreal. In Kirindy Forest, it spends daylight hours in tree holes of dead or live trees or in leaf nests constructed by the sympatric giant mouse lemurs (Mirza). To avoid competition with other nocturnal lemurs, the Pale Fork-marked Lemur tends to use the highest sleeping sites. Individuals either sleep alone or in pairs, with pair partners sharing the same sleeping site about every third day. Adult Pale Fork-marked Lemurs used 8-38 different sleeping sites during a 20-month study in Kirindy Forest. When pair partners were not sleeping in the same tree hole, their individual sleeping sites were an average of 101 m apart. Individuals generally leave their sleeping sites just before dusk, and they are most active (including vocalizing) in the first hour after sunset.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Pale Fork-marked Lemur is the best studied of the four species of Phaner. Family groups, consisting of an adult pair and their offspring, occupy and defend well-defined stable territories of 3-10 ha, but adults only spend about 20% of their time less than 25 m from each other when not sleeping. Pair partners are an average of 100 m from each other, which seems to be a strategy to avoid competition while feeding. Females tend to be dominant in contacts with strange males from neighboring groups. Social grooming occurs between males, females, and juveniles. Individuals engage in social grooming face-to-face, often while hanging upside-down. Density estimates derived from studies in the Kirindy Forest and Marosalaza are similar at ¢.50-70 ind/km?, but higher densities of 300-400 ind/km? have been estimated in the forests of Tsimembo.
Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix I. Classified as Least Concern on The [UCN Red List. However, at the IUCN/SSC Lemur Red-Listing Workshop held in July 2012, the Pale Fork-marked Lemur was assessed as endangered due to an ongoing and predicted population decline of more than 50% over 10 years. The Pale Fork-marked Lemur is threatened mainly by habitat loss due to illegal logging, annual burning to create pasture, and slash-and-burn agriculture. It is reported to occur in three national parks (Tsingy de Bemaraha, Tsingy de Namoroka, and Zombitse-Vohibasia) and Andranomena Special Reserve. It also is found in Kirindy Forest (part of the Menabe-Antimena Protected Area), Tsimembo Classified Forest, and possibly Andohahela National Park. With regard to the latter location, fork-marked lemurs have been recorded calling in and around Parcel 2 of Andohahela National Park, but it is not known whether the form in question is the Pale Fork-marked Lemur or an undescribed species.
Bibliography. Ausilio & Raveloarinoro (1993), Charles-Dominique & Petter (1980), Feistner & Schmid (1999), Ganzhorn & Randriamanalina (2004), Goodman (2003), Groves (2001), Groves & Tattersall (1991), Hladik et al. (1980), Kappeler (2003), Mittermeier et al. (2010), Petter el al. (1971, 1975), Rasoloarison et al. (1995), Schulke (2003a), Schulke & Kappeler (2003), Tattersall (1982).
description: Published as part of Russell A. Mittermeier, Anthony B. Rylands & Don E. Wilson, 2013, Cheirogaleidae, pp. 28-65 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 3 Primates, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on pages 64-65, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6639118