Отправлено: 06.08.22 20:05. Заголовок: Fauna of Islands of the Indian Ocean

Starting a new topic because this doesn't fit the already existing ones about islands (Atlantic and Pacific).
I saw in the map of the Neocene that Adaman and Nicobar still exist, so I thought about some species that could exist here. Since it was a chain of islands, I think that the fauna could be different in each of them. For example, the largest one (Adaman itself) could have maintained large introduced species such as the chital deer and feral dogs. These animals would have descendants in the Neocene.
Meanwhile in Great Nicobar, terrestrial predators could be absent and the largest animal could be a flightless descendant of the Nicobar pigeon .
What do you think?

 Отправлено: 11.02.23 11:03. Заголовок: Interesting animals!..

Interesting animals!

цитата:

Differently from most of their relatives in Madagascar, their groups are led by a dominant male, who is the father of all young in the group.

What circumstances have led to this change?

 Отправлено: 11.02.23 12:55. Заголовок: медведь пишет: What..

медведь пишет:

цитата:

What circumstances have led to this change?

An intense intraspecific competition forced them to have the stronger male leading the group when fighting rivals for resources.

 Отправлено: 11.02.23 12:00. Заголовок: JOrnitho I like them..

JOrnitho
I like them.

 Отправлено: 11.02.23 16:16. Заголовок: Finished the other s..

Finished the other species:

Ngazidja kangaroo-rat (Macropodontomys major)
Order: Rodentia
Family: Muridae
Habitat: Forests and open areas of Ngazidja Island
During their expansion, the humans had inadvertently transported several commensal species with them. The brown rat (Rattus norvegicus) was one of the animals that became widespread thanks to anthropogenic expansion. The populations that lived in the Comoros Islands had survived into the Neocene and gave rise to the Genus Macropodontomys, the Comoros kangaroo-rats. The type species of this group is the Ngazidja kangaroo-rat, an inhabitant of the forests and open areas.

Due to convergent evolution, the Ngazidja kangaroo-rat have the superficial appearance of a true kangaroo. It has large hindfeet that allow them to move by jumping. The forelimbs are relatively short, but are used to hold food and branches. Their incisors are large and the muscles in their skull allow them to deliver powerful bites. By standing on their hindlimbs, they can reach 100 cm of height and have 70 cm of length. They have a long black tail, measuring 55 cm. The appearance of the tail is scaly and robust. The pelage is a uniform, deep and rich brown color with reddish highlights over most of the body, the head and lower parts are light brown. The ears are rounded and large.

They are omnivorous, feeding on leaves, buds, flowers, seeds, fungi, insects and fruits. Groups of these rodents can be seen together with other animals.

The Ngazidja kangaroo-rat is diurnal and monogamous, the males and females will stay together for life. In the case of one of them dying, the other will seek a new partner. They live in groups of seven to ten individuals, formed by the mated pair and their offspring. While foraging, one of the members of the group will stay watching for predators. After sighting one, they will warn the others with a series of squeaks. When threatened, they escape with great speed. However, the members of the genus Macropodontomys have powerful muscles in the hindlimbs, which allow them to deliver kicks to enemies. Their bite can also cause damage.

The mating season starts during the end of winter. The females give birth to three to five young inside dens that are excavated by both parents. They are born naked and blind, remaining inside the den for three weeks. After that, they’ll follow the family in foraging. The sexual maturity is reached within 7 months, but they remain in the family group until reaching one year. They have a lifespan of 12 years.

The genus Macropodontomys has other representatives. The Mohéli kangaroo-rat (Macropodontomys minor) is the smallest member of the group. It inhabits the forests of Mohéli Island. They can reach 60 cm of height and have 45 cm of length, with a brown tail measuring 50 cm. Their fur is dark gray, with the head being light brown. The Anjouan kangaroo-rat (Macropodontomys agilis) inhabits the Anjouan Island. They have 70 cm of height and have 55 cm of length, with a dark gray tail measuring 50 cm. Their fur is dark brown, with the head being light gray.


Fox civet (Viverralopex minima)
Order: Carnivora
Family: Viverridae
Habitat: Forests and woodlands of Ngazidja Island
During the Holocene, the man introduced species to other continents. Some of these introduced species were capable of surviving in their new habitats and giving rise to descendants. The fox civet is one of these cases, a descendant of the population of the small Indian civet (Viverricula indica) that was introduced to the Comoros Islands. This small mammal is endemic to the forests of Ngazidja, the largest island in the archipelago.
The fox civet is one of smallest viverrids in the world, with a body length of 32 cm and a tail with 15 cm. It has a coarse fur that is brownish gray, with usually several longitudinal black bands on the back and longitudinal rows of spots on the sides. The tail is black with a white tufted tip. The feet and long legs are black.
While they are omnivorous, the fox civets have a preference for plant material such as roots and fruits, taking the ones that the spectacled lemurs drop from the trees. Since they aren’t considered a threat by herbivores, it's common to see them foraging together with dwarf hogs and Ngazidja kangaroo-rats. These groups are used to protect against their predator, the false fossa. They'll also feed on insects, molluscs and fungi.
The fox civets are diurnal and nocturnal. With mostly terrestrial habits, they inhabit holes in the ground, under rocks or in thick bushes. While being capable of climbing on trees, this species rarely does it. Solitary, fox civets only interact during the mating season, which occurs during the end of the winter. The gestation period lasts for 70 days. The female gives birth to four or five young. Kittens weigh between 90 and 110 g at birth and open their eyes after five days. They reach 1,000 g at the age of ten weeks. The fox civet reaches sexual maturity within 6 months and has a lifespan of 8 years.

 Отправлено: 11.02.23 16:47. Заголовок: JOrnitho They arte ..

JOrnitho
They arte also good!

 Отправлено: 11.02.23 19:54. Заголовок: An intense intraspec..

цитата:

An intense intraspecific competition forced them to have the stronger male leading the group when fighting rivals for resources.

OK.
Both the rat and the civet are interesting!

 Отправлено: 12.02.23 17:59. Заголовок: Would be possible fo..

Would be possible for a solitary large lemur filling the niche of orangutans to live in Madagascar? I tried to search more about its Neocene fauna, but most of it is in Russian.

 Отправлено: 12.02.23 19:36. Заголовок: JOrnitho пишет: a s..

JOrnitho пишет:

цитата:

a solitary large lemur

Solitary lifestyle for primates? It's rather unusual.
Yes, te most art of lemur descriptions is in Russian. Alas, I haven't a team of 20-30 professional translators able to translate the whole project...

 Отправлено: 12.02.23 20:36. Заголовок: Автор пишет: Solita..

Автор пишет:

цитата:

Solitary lifestyle for primates? It's rather unusual.

It's unusual, but not impossible. The orangutan is a primate and solitary. The same for the dwarf lemurs, which are solitary or lived in pairs. The species that I proposed could live in pairs and rather than having the lifestyle of a orangutan, could be more similar to that of the gibbon.

Автор пишет:

цитата:

Yes, te most art of lemur descriptions is in Russian. Alas, I haven't a team of 20-30 professional translators able to translate the whole project...

Because of this talk about lemurs, I'll work in the translation of Chapter 41:Savannas of Lemuria. I'm not a profissional, but hope that it'll help the project.

 Отправлено: 12.02.23 21:08. Заголовок: Lorises are also sol..

Lorises are also solitary.

 Отправлено: 14.02.23 23:49. Заголовок: Made a description f..

Made a description for a lemur species. I'll continue working in the translation of chapter 41.

Northern singing lemur (Tragoudiavahi versigularis)
Order: Primates
Family: Indriidae
Habitat: High canopy of the tropical forests of Northeastern Madagascar
The anthropogenic onslaught over nature during the Holocene had damaged several ecosystems and brought several species to extinction. The disappearance of humanity gave some respite to the survivors and they continue to evolve, allowing several new species to appear in the Neocene. The fauna of Madagascar suffered many losses due to human interference, but some of its species were capable of surviving.
The woolly lemurs (Avahi) had survived and in the Neocene the genus Tragoudiavahi had derived from them. These primates are the singing lemurs.
The singing lemurs are medium-sized primates that live in the canopy of forests, rarely coming down to the ground. The two species of singing lemur have a large gular sac that can be inflated, allowing them to make resonating calls and songs. As well as solidifying contacts between groups, the songs may communicate territorial defense and boundaries, environmental conditions, reproductive potential of the group members, and warning signals. The males have colorful skin in their throats which are used in mating displays, together with the vocalization.
The main representative of this genus is the northern singing lemur, an inhabitant of the high canopy of the tropical forests of Northeastern Madagascar. The average head to tail length of a female is 80 cm, but the males are larger, reaching 120 cm. They have a naked dark gray snout and a dark stripe that stretches from the back of the head along the spine. Its soft and wooly fur ranges from light brown to deep reddish brown, with a lighter underside. Their tail is dark brown and long, making up nearly half of the animal size. They have bare throats, which are reddish-blue in the males. Their forelimbs are longer than their hindlimbs. They move through the canopy by climbing and with a slow brachiation. Despite their size and weight, these lemurs are capable of doing graceful jumps from tree to tree.
Their diets mainly consist of leaves, but they also rely on nuts, fruits, seeds, and flowers for important nutrients. These foods provide sugar necessary for growth and energy. The most important part of their diets is leaves, which they cannot live without for more than a week. They eat both older and younger leaves; however, the older leaves provide more nutrition. The singing lemurs are able to eat the fibrous leaves due to the structural aspects of their dentition. Narrow incisors aid in the ingestion of the leaves, and molars with sharp, shearing crests help them to better chew their food. They also had developed ruminant-like digestive system, similar of that present in Colobinae monkeys. They are foregut fermenters, using bacteria to detoxify plant compounds before reaching the intestine, where toxins can be absorbed. They are the only genus of primates, besides the Colobinae that are capable of doing it.
The northern singing lemur practices long-term monogamy, seeking a new partner only after the death of a mate. It lives in small groups consisting of the mated male and female and their maturing offspring. Like many other species of lemur, they live in a female dominant society. The dominant female often will displace males to lower branches and poorer feeding grounds, and is typically the one to lead the group during travel. They are usually active for an average of 8 hours per day, leaving their sleeping sites right around sunrise and entering sleeping trees an average of 3 hours before sunset. These groups are quite vocal, communicating with other groups by singing, roaring and other vocalizations.
They reach sexual maturity at 8 years old. Females bear offspring every two to three years, with a gestation period around 120–150 days. The single infant is usually born in early spring. The infant clings to its mother's belly until it is four or five months old, at which time it is ready to move onto her back. They begin to demonstrate independence at eight months, but it will not be fully independent from its mother until it is at least two years old. Northern singing lemurs have a lifespan of 25 years.

The southern singing lemur (Tragoudiavahi rubrogularis) is another representative of the genus. Inhabiting the broad-leaf tropical forests of Southern Madagascar, this species is smaller than their Northern relatives. The females have 70 cm, while the males have 100 cm. It has orangish-yellow fur on its back, light gray fur on its belly, and a distinctive white line on its head and forehead. They have a naked throat, which is bright red in the males

 Отправлено: 15.02.23 07:56. Заголовок: It' s good. tret..

It' s good.

цитата:

tretretretre

This name is too hard to read. I advice you to replece it.

 Отправлено: 15.02.23 13:48. Заголовок: лягушка пишет: This..

лягушка пишет:

цитата:

This name is too hard to read. I advice you to replece it.

Edited, I'll leave it as singing lemur.

 Отправлено: 15.02.23 17:00. Заголовок: Interesting animal!..

Interesting animal!

 Отправлено: 18.02.23 16:41. Заголовок: I saw that the proje..

I saw that the project already have a brachiating lemur in one of the Russian chapters, so I'll edit the description of singing lemur to turn it into something different: an analogue to leaf-eating monkeys, with multichambered, complex stomachs.

 Отправлено: 18.02.23 21:23. Заголовок: JOrnitho пишет: wit..

JOrnitho пишет:

цитата:

with multichambered, complex stomachs

Oh, in one Russian chapter, we (me and Биолог) had to work hard to invent a multi-chambered stomach for giant Lagomoropus - a large descendant of hares living in northern coniferous forests. Have you any data on the anatomy of lemur stomach?

By the way, Биолог said he has to leave our forum forever. He didn't explain me any reasons of it, but now we lack this good person.

 Отправлено: 18.02.23 22:09. Заголовок: Автор пишет: Have y..

Автор пишет:

цитата:

Have you any data on the anatomy of lemur stomach?

Yes. I found some articles about gastrointestinal and digestive anatomy of some species. My idea for the singing lemur is that their diet of leaves resulted in the development of a multichambered stomach. Perhaps even a metabolism that digest toxic leaves.

Автор пишет:

цитата:

Биолог said he has to leave our forum forever.

This is really sad, it was good to talk with him. I'll miss him.

 Отправлено: 18.02.23 22:29. Заголовок: JOrnitho, this is th..

JOrnitho, this is the chapter about Lagomoropus http://www.sivatherium.narod.ru/1smolvar.htm you can reed it using online-translator.

Автор пишет:

цитата:

Have you any data on the anatomy of lemur stomach?

https://sci-hub.ru/10.1007/s10329-020-00873-8 maybe this will help you...

there is such an article, but it is not in the public domain
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00248-022-02034-4
you can only read a critical analysis
https://researchblog.duke.edu/2022/08/22/lemur-gut-isnt-one-ecosystem-its-many/

 Отправлено: 19.02.23 04:09. Заголовок: Would be possible fo..

Would be possible for a anteater-like descendant of the tenrec to live in Madagascar?

 Отправлено: 20.02.23 02:14. Заголовок: I made the descripti..

I made the description for a large bamboo eating lemur, close related to the baribal lemur.

Tokandia, or Panda lemur (Tokandia ailuropodoides)
Order: Primates
Family: Lemuridae
Habitat: Montane bamboo forests of Madagascar
The anthropogenic onslaught over nature during the Holocene had damaged several ecosystems and brought several species to extinction. The disappearance of humanity gave some respite to the survivors and they continue to evolve, allowing several new species to appear in the Neocene. In Madagascar, the ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) was a widespread species and gave rise to several descendants in the Neocene. Among them was the tokandia, also known as panda lemur. This name was used by indigenous people of the island to name a mythological creature that was closely associated with the extinct Megaladapis.

The tokandia is a large inhabitant of the montane bamboo forests of Madagascar. This species is closely related to the baribal lemur: Tokandia is the sister group to Ambulolemur. Adult tokandias are 170 to 190 centimeters long and 60 to 90 cm tall at the shoulder. The males are larger than the females. The weight of an adult male is of 60 to 160 kg, while the adult female can have 54 to 120 kg. The long ringed tail of their ancestor was reduced to a rudimentary tail with a white tuff at the tip. They have an extended face and the forelimbs are longer than their hindlimbs. Together with their heavy build, it gives them an ursine appearance. The ventral coat and throat are yellowish-white. The dorsal coat is dark gray with a brown pygal patch around the tail region. The muzzle is pale gray and the nose is black, and the eyes are encompassed by black triangular patches. Their ears are small and rounded, but they have an acute hearing. Their ability to sense smells is also well developed.

Besides the tokandia’s black and white appearance being similar to that of a panda, they also share a diet. These lemurs are primarily herbivorous, eating almost exclusively bamboo, including on new shoots, leaf bases and the creepers. The tokandia uses their hands to grasp the plants and bring them to their mouths where large molars crush and grind fibrous plant material. They have developed anti-toxin mechanisms that help them avoid intoxication by cyanide present in the shoots of bamboo. Most of the cyanide is metabolized to less toxic substances and discharged in urine. Because of the synchronous flowering, death, and regeneration of all bamboo within a species, the panda lemur must have at least two different species available in its range to avoid starvation. They will also occasionally eat leaves, fruits and more rarely insects.

This species is solitary or lives in monogamous pairs, with “divorces” being very rare. Single males will attract females to their territory by vocalizing. The couple will then settle in the male's territory. Each tokandia has a well delimited territory, full of different species of bamboo for it to eat. They mark these areas by rubbing their well developed antebrachial glands in rocks and tree trunks. Mated pairs will share this task. If another panda lemur trespasses these markings, the owners of the territory invaded will respond violently. Even if their poor diet gave them a slow metabolism, these animals can be very aggressive when defending their territory. Slaps and bites are very common in their fights.

Besides scent marks, tokandias also maintain contact with each other through vocalization. The pair can split when foraging, with male and female eating in different parts of their territory. However, they’ll remain in touch with each other through the use of vocalization.

The tokandia is active during the daytime. The low nutrition quality of bamboo means these primates need to eat more frequently. They construct nests to be used during the night. Nests tend to be simple aggregations of branches and leaves. Unlike other primates, panda lemurs tend to sleep in nests on the ground. Due to their heavy weight, they rarely climb on trees, with only the young doing it more frequently.

This species has cubs once a year. The female gives birth to a single young after a gestation period of 160 days. They are carried ventrally by the mother for the first 3 weeks, then dorsally by both parents. The young lemurs begin to eat solid food after two months and are fully weaned after five months. The parents expel the young from their territory when they have one year, usually the time that the females give birth again. Sexual maturity is reached between 3 and 5 years. Tokandias have a lifespan of 35 years.