Tarsiers

Tarsiers
Originally uploaded by LouiseL.

As part of the tour, we visited the tarsier sactuary. The tarsier is truely an amazing animal, and scientists have difficulty classing it. However, it has been agreed while it is some kind of primate, it is definately not a monkey. Also, contrary to popular belief, it is not the smallest primate in the world.

Tarsiers are named for their special elongated tarsal bones,
which form their ankles and enable them to leap 3 meters
(almost 10 feet) from tree to tree. They have a long, partly
hairless tail that arcs over their back when they hop on the ground.

The eyes are the tarsiers’ most notable features. Each eye is bigger than the entire brain. Tarsiers can rotate their head almost 180 degrees in each direction, like owls. All tarsiers hunt at night,exclusively for animal prey. Their diet includes primarily insects
such as cockroaches and crickets and sometimes reptiles,birds, and bats. One tarsier species is found in the Philippines.

Four species are currently recognized in Indonesia and another
(Tarsius sangirensis) has been proposed, based on recently
gathered field data on vocalizations, measurements, and genetics.

See the title of this blog for the link to the tarsier sanctuary.