Long brushstrokes in the mud showed where others had slipped before us. Placing our feet only on roots and rocks, we soon reached a narrow ridge where the team had assembled in an airy glade of thin-boled trees. There on burlap sacks lay four silky sifaka, three males and one female. They were sleeping quietly, with broad green leaves laid over their faces to keep the sun out of their still open eyes. I could see their white-furred chests gently breathing in and out.
Silkies are the quintessence of lithe and lanky, all arms and legs and long white tails.
They had heads round and big as softballs, with black and pink skin on their faces and large, brown eyes with black pupils resembling our own. Though they were asleep, the silky sifaka had their eyes open and drank water freely from a syringe. Here, a drop of water still clings to the furry chin of a silky. Both hands and feet featured opposable digits which allow the silkies to grip tree trunks. On the hands, it was interesting to see that the longest finger was the ring finger, while the smallest was the index finger.