The Yale expositor., 1900-05-25
Has Perfectly Formed Fingers and is of
Monkey Family.

Madagascar contains many strange
things. and of them the "half-monkey,"
with its skeleton-like fingers, is
worthy example.
Nowhere else in the world is there
another animal like IL. It belongs to
Madagascar exclusively, and even in
its home it is almost unknown, or was
until the beginning of this century.
This Is due to it's manner of life. 1t
not only is remarkably shy, but it also
Is entirely nocturnal in its habits. AS
Madagascar forests are travelled rarely
even in daytime and never at night,
by human beings, it is not surprising
that this strange lemur has remained
almost mystery.
The first specimen was found in 1882,
when a German naturalist named Son.
nenrath shot one. When his native
guides saw the animal they were no
less surprised than he, and they yelled
AYE! Aye!" So it happened that the
first name which was given to the lit
tie beast was ayeaye. 1t was fifty years
after that before another specimen was
taken. Naturalists had about decided
that it was extinct. for all effors to
get one had been fruitless. when Dc
Castelle caught one in 1874. 1t died on
the way to the coast, and only the skin
and the skeleton reached Europe. But
in 1862 a living specimen arrived in
London, and since then several skele-
tons and skins have been brought to
Europe. These have been so few in
number, however, that not many
museums in the world can boast a
specimen.
Recently DR.. Friedrich Krauer had
the great opportunity of a naturalist's
life. He obtained a perfect, healthy
young specimen, which he managed TO
keep alive and we'll for a long time,
and thus he has been enabled to give
the world the first authentic and real
story of the habits and even the ap-
pearance of this wonderful animal
The picture which is printed here is
the first drawing made from life Of
this strange beast. 1t was drawn for
the German paper Gartenlaube, and no
one could possibly suppose that the
various pictures made from descrip-
ton, which ornament many we'll
known works on natural history, could
be intended to represent the same ami
NAL
Chiromys madagascarensis, which is
the name that science has bestowed on
this lemur. is so thoroughly nocturnal
In its habits that 1t refuses to show
itself in the day, even in captivity.
When it is not able to hide. it rolls
itself into a ball, covers itself with it's
thick tail and spits savagely at any
one who disturbs it, Whoever wishes
to see it active must watch it at night
Then the observer is treated to a dis
play of rare and interesting activity.
lively as a squirrel, the "flnger-ani-
NAL" fits about in it's cage like a
ghost. 1t is here, there and every
where, and never is quiet for a mo
ment. 1t hunts like a bat, which it
resembles at night with it's swift mo-
tons and silent ways. Like the Dat,
too, it hunts insects, particularly the
gorgeous Madagascar butterflies, which
1t loves, for food. But it does not dis
dain anything else that is edible, for
its bill of fare comprises dates, apples,
figs, boiled rice, biscuit, eggs and milk.
After meals it cleans itself like a
squirrel.
When it drinks, curious function of
its weird fingers becomes apparent. 1t
dips its long, thin, withered tools into
the liquid and ticks them off. This is
the only way of drinking Other uses
to which it puts these queer limbs or
claws are to dig things out from cracks
and crevices in tree trunks, and to