Slender Loris:

Rare beauty of the wild

It may be no beauty to win the crown at any beauty pageant held in the Animal Kingdom, but this tiny gremlin-like creature which is not more than eight inches in size has succeeded in taking centre stage just by making an appearance before a camera lens. So what is so unique about this tiny primate to become hot news just because it was spotted by researchers? Well, there is a good reason for the little loris to be given centre stage, not only in Sri Lanka, but also the world over. According to the Zoological Society of London, the loris which was first discovered way back in 1937 disappeared for nearly 60 years soon after its discovery . Researchers initially thought the loris had become extinct, but then it was sighted once again in 2002, only to disappear again. Now, almost eight years later the loris is said to have shown its cute face (yes, every animal is cute in its own way,) again. So, where was it hiding all these years, one cannot help but wonder.

Now that it has been spotted naturally there is a big hue and cry about it being alive!, Let’s hope the loris which was captured on camera recently is not the only one inhabiting the rainforest of our country today. This would definitely be good news because that means the animal is no longer threatened with extinction. Isn’t it great to know that at least one tiny creature has been spared the fate of being wiped out of the face of this Earth, and that too in our very own country? It certainly is great news. More than this, what is most important is to know for certain if the loris that has been seen is a new species and not a subspecies of the red slender loris, which lives in the rainforests of our country. Scientists are of the view that it is a new species.

With its extremely distinct orb-like eyes, the Horton Plains slender loris as the researchers call it, has captured the attention of many, both here and abroad. So, let’s find out more about this little creature and the other loris species found in our country. The Red Slender Loris is one of two slender loris species found in Sri Lanka. The other one being the Grey Slender Loris.

The Red Slender Loris (Loris tardigradus) is a small, nocturnal prosimian native to the rainforests of Sri Lanka.It is about eight inches long. This small, slender primate has large forward facing eyes,long slender limbs, a well developed index finger and large prominent ears, which are thin, rounded and hairless at the edges. The ears of the recently spotted loris are small. Its orb like eyes are its most prominent feature. On its face it has a central pale stripe that starts above the eyes and runs down towards the nose. It has no tail eventhough it resembles a small monkey or squirrel at a glance.

The soft dense fur is reddish-brown in colour on the back but the underside is whitish-grey with a sprinkling of silver hair. Its body length on average is 7-10 inches in (180-250 mm), with an average weight of a mere 3-13 oz (85-370 g).The loris in general has a four way grip on each foot. The big toe opposes the other four toes for a pincer like grip on branches and food.It is known that the Red Slender Loris favours lowland rainforests (up to 700 m in altitude), tropical rainforests and inter-monsoon forests of the south western wet-zone of Sri Lanka. The most common plant species eaten by the animal is Humboldtia which has a mutualistic relationship with ants, providing abundant food for lorises.Lorises are primarily insectivorous but they also eat bird eggs, berries, leaves, buds and occasionally invertebrates as well as geckoes and lizards.

To maximize protein and nutrient uptake, these animals are known to consume every part of their prey, including the scales and bones.The Red Slender Loris (Loris tardigradus) is endemic to Sri Lanka. Its relative, the Grey Slender Loris (Loris lydekkerianus) also occurs in India.

There are two subspecies of Red Slender Loris: Loris tardigradus tardigradus and Loris tardigradus nycticeboides. Loris is the common name for the strepsirrhine primates of the subfamily Lorinae in the family Lorisidae.

The taxonomic classification of the species is: Red Slender Loris, Loris tardigradus. Dry Zone Slender Loris, Loris tardigradus tardigradus; Horton Plains Slender Loris, Loris tardigradus nyctoceboides

The Red Slender Loris which is endemic to Sri Lanka differs from its close relative the Gray Slender Loris in its frequent use of rapid arboreal locomotion.

It forms small social groups, containing adults of both sexes as well as young animals. This species is among the most social of the nocturnal primates.

During daylight hours the animals sleep in groups in branch tangles, or curled up on a branch with their heads between their legs. The groups also undertake mutual grooming and play at wrestling. The adults typically hunt separately during the night. They make nests out of leaves or find hollows of trees or a similar secure place to live in.

Females are dominant. The female which reaches maturity at 10 months is the dominant animal of the group. The gestation (pregnancy) period is 166-169 days. It gives birth to one or two young and nurses them for six to seven months. The lifespan of this species is believed to be around 15-18 years in the wild.

The earlier conception was that lorises were primitive, slow and solitary. However, recent research has shown that this is not so. The loris is a very difficult species to research in the wild.

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Fast facts

* The Horton Plains slender loris, was discovered by photograph after researchers for the Zoological Society of London, the University of Colombo and the Open University of Sri Lanka had spent time surveying the forest.

* Scientists believe the rare Sri Lankan loris primate may belong to a new species and not “a subspecies of Sri Lanka ‘s red slender loris” as originally thought.

* The Red Slender Loris was identified as one of the top-10 “focal species” in 2007 by the Evolutionarily Distinct and Globally Endangered (EDGE) project

* The late 2009 rediscovery and capture by a team working under the Zoological Society of London’s EDGE programme has resulted in the first detailed physical examination of the Horton Plains sub-species and the first-ever photographs of it.

The limited available evidence suggests there may be only about 100 animals still existing, which would make it among the top five most-threatened primates worldwide.

* The family Lorisidae includes lorises, lemurs, galagos and pottos, and at least 37 species are found in Africa, South of the Sahara, Southern India, Sri Lanka, South-Eastern Asia and the East Indies, except Madagascar

* In Tamil, it is known as Thevangu, a phrase often ascribed to people who are too thin. In Sinhala the Grey Slender Loris is known as Alu Unahapuluwa and the Red Slender Loris as the Rathu Unahapuluwa.

The Horton Plains Loris (L. T. Mycticeboides) occurs in the Horton Plains National Park and possibly in the Sabaragamuwa Province. Researchers are carrying out a long-term study into the conservation status of this animal, which was finally photographed after hundreds of hours of searching. Let’s hope it will not disappear again!