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Lorisidae

Cladus: Eukaryota
Supergroup: Opisthokonta
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Classis: Mammalia
Subclassis: Theria
Infraclassis: Placentalia
Ordo: Primates
Subordo: Strepsirrhini
Infraordo: Lorisiformes
Familia: Lorisidae
Genera: Arctocebus - Loris - Nycticebus - Perodicticus - Pseudopotto

Name

Lorisidae Gray, 1821

Synonyms

* Loridae

References

* Lorisidae on Mammal species of the World.
Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, 2 Volume Set edited by Don E. Wilson, DeeAnn M. Reeder
* London Med. Repos. 15: 298.

Vernacular names
Internationalization
Česky: Outloňovití
Svenska: Lorier

Lorisidae (or sometimes Loridae) is a family of strepsirrhine primates. The lorisids are all slim arboreal animals and include the lorises, pottos and angwantibos. Lorisids live in tropical, central Africa as well as in south and southeast Asia.

Physical characteristics

Lorisids have a close, woolly fur which is usually grey or brown colored, darker on the top side. The eyes are large and face forward. The ears are small and often partially hidden in the fur. The thumbs are opposable and the index finger is short. The second toe of the hind legs has a fine claw for grooming, typical for strepsirrhines. Their tails are short or are missing completely. They grow to a length of 17 to 40 cm and a weight of between 0.3 and 2 kg, depending on the species. Their dental formula is similar to that of lemurs: Upper: 2.1.3.3, lower: 2.1.3.3

Behavior

Lorisids are diurnal and arboreal. Unlike the closely related galagos, lorisids never jump. Some have slow deliberate movements, whilst others can move with some speed across branches. It was previously thought that all lorisids moved slowly, but investigations using red light proved this to be wrong. Nonetheless, even the faster species freeze or move slowly if they hear or see any potential predator. This habit of remaining motionless whilst in danger is successful only because of the leafy environment of their jungle home, which helps to conceal their true position.[2] With their strong hands they clasp at the branches and cannot be removed without significant force. Most lorisids are solitary or live in small family groups.

Diet

The main diet of most lorisids consists of insects, but they also consume bird eggs and small vertebrates as well as fruits and sap.

Reproduction

Lorisids have a gestation period of four to six months and give birth to two young. These often clasp themselves to the belly of the mother or wait in nests, while the mother goes to search for food. After three to nine months - depending upon species - they are weaned and are fully mature within ten to eighteen months. The life expectancy of the lorises can be to up to 20 years.
Classification

There are five genera and nine species of lorid.[1]

Order Primates
Suborder Strepsirrhini: non-tarsier prosimians
Infraorder Lemuriformes
Infraorder Lorisiformes
Family Lorisidae
Subfamily Perodicticinae
Genus Arctocebus
Calabar angwantibo, Arctocebus calabarensis
Golden angwantibo, Arctocebus aureus
Genus Perodicticus
Potto, Perodicticus potto
Genus Pseudopotto
False potto, Pseudopotto martini
Subfamily Lorinae
Genus Loris
Red slender loris, Loris tardigradus
Gray slender loris, Loris lydekkerianus
Genus Nycticebus
Sunda slow loris, Nycticebus coucang
Bengal slow loris, Nycticebus bengalensis
Pygmy slow loris, Nycticebus pygmaeus
Javan slow loris, Nycticebus javanicus
Bornean slow loris, Nycticebus menagensis
Family Galagidae: galagos
Suborder Haplorrhini: tarsiers, monkeys and apes

References

^ a b Groves, C. (2005). Wilson, D. E., & Reeder, D. M, eds. ed. Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 121-123. OCLC 62265494. ISBN 0-801-88221-4.
^ Charles-Dominique, Pierre (1984). Macdonald, D.. ed. The Encyclopedia of Mammals. New York: Facts on File. pp. 332–337. ISBN 0-87196-871-1.

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Source: Wikipedia, Wikispecies: All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License