Galago gallarum Thomas 1901
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
Galagidae
Galago
Galago gallarum

description: 9.
Somali Lesser Galago
Galago gallarum
French: Galago de Somalie / German: Somali-Galago / Spanish: Galago menor de Somalia
Other common names: Somali Bushbaby, Somali Galago
Taxonomy. Galago gallarum Thomas, 1901,
Dawa River (= Webi Dau), Boran country, southern Abyssinia (= Ethiopia).
This species was first recognized by O. Thomas in 1901, but then subsumed as a subspecies of G. senegalensis. In 1979, T. R. Olson argued for its recognition as a distinct species. It is narrowly sympatric with G. senegalensis in Meru National Park, central Kenya. Monotypic.
Distribution. S Ethiopia, E Kenya, and W Somalia, patchily between the Tana and Shebelle river valleys, W to Lake Turkana and the Rift Lakes of Ethiopia; distributional limits in the Ogaden region and elsewhere are vague, and it may also occur in SE Sudan and NE Uganda.
Descriptive notes. Head-body 13-20 cm,tail 21-29 cm; weight 220-250 g (males) and 180-220 g (females). The Somali Lesser Galago is dull-colored. It is generally similar to the Northern Lesser Galago (G. senegalensis) but with shorter hindlimbs, a shorter black tail, and medium-sized black ears. The coat is buff to sandy-brown above and light gray below, with a yellowish boundary between the two zones. Outer surfaces of limbs are yellowish, and the tail is mostly black. The face and throat are white with incomplete, narrow dark brown eye-rings. There is no sexual dichromatism, but males seem to be larger.
Habitat. Semi-arid country (Acacia woodland and thorn scrub). The known elevational range of the Somali Lesser Galago is 150-1200 m. It lives in drier and thornier habitat than any other galago (or indeed, any other African primate). This scattered bush habitat may require it to spend more time on the ground than other galagos. It uses small trees (2-15 m in height), many of which produce gum. It can be found in all strata in Acacia-Commiphora deciduous brushland and thicket.
Food and Feeding. The Somali Lesser Galago is probably a faunivore-frugivore that also specializes on gum, although the diet has not yet been studied in detail. It eats seeds and animal prey (invertebrates), and traplines for droplets of Acacia (Fabaceae) gum produced as a result of attacks by wood-boring insects. It forages at all heights, from the ground to 15 m, but mostly at 1-5 m. It hunts in the dense undergrowth and will pounce on prey on the ground.
Breeding. Little is known about the breeding of the Somali Lesser Galago. The reproductive rate is unknown, but it probably has two pregnancies per year like other species of Galago. Adult females with large, weaned juveniles have been seen in September, suggesting single infants and births around March. Older infants may be carried on the ventrum of the mother, an uncommon behavior for galagos; only three other species, the Southern Needle-clawed Galago (Euoticus elegantulus), the Northern Needle-clawed Galago (LE. pallidus), and the Thick-tailed Greater Galago (Otolemur crassicaudatus) may carry their young this way. The mother parks her young in a single clump of trees while she forages as far as 50 m away.
Activity patterns. The Somali Lesser Galago is nocturnal and arboreal. Ears and hindfeet of the Somali Lesser Galago are shorter than those of the similarsized Northern Lesser Galago; the latter may be adaptations for rapid quadrupedal movement through the very thorny vegetation. It can make leaps between branches more than 2:5 m apart. Adults frequently go to the ground to hop bipedally to the next bush or tree. It does not appearto use tree holes or make nests to sleep in.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Somali Lesser Galago is a solitary forager, usually alone but sometimes in pairs or trios. Allogrooming between mother and offspring has been observed. A species-specific loud call is the advertising quack that is possibly used to maintain long-distance spacing and territoriality. Other calls include yaps, “chitters,” “pings,” and “woos.” Over much of the range, density is probably less than 1 ind/ha, although densities are much higher at some localities.
Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Somali Lesser Galago is widespread and, although patchily distributed, locally common. It is known to occur in three protected areas: Meru National Park, Shaba, and Arawale national reserves in Kenya.
Bibliography. Anderson (1999), Bearder (1999), Bearder, Ambrose et al. (2003), Bearder, Honess & Ambrose (1995), Butynski & de Jong (2004), Harcourt & Bearder (1989), Izard & Nash (1988), de Jong & Butynski (2004), Kingdon (1997), Masters & Bragg (2000), Nash (1983), Nash et al. (1989), Olson (1979), Perkin & Butynski (2002/2003), Zimmermann (1989a).
description: Published as part of Russell A. Mittermeier, Anthony B. Rylands & Don E. Wilson, 2013, Galagidae, pp. 184-209 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 3 Primates, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on page 201, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6657019