Tarsier

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Tarsier

Scientific Classification
Kingdom Animalia Phylum Chordata Class Mammalia Order Primates Suborder Haplorrhini Family Tarsiidae Genus Tarsius
Species
Philippine Tarsier (T. syrichta) Horsfield's Tarsier (T. bancanus) Spectral Tarsier (T. tarsier) Dian's Tarsier (T. dentatus) Peleng Tarsier (T. pelengensis) Sangihe Tarsier (T. sangirensis) Pygmy Tarsier (T. pumilus)

The tiny Tarsier is a wonderful creature that is almost smaller than the human hand. Tarsiers range from 3 to 6 inches long, but their tails add another 5 to 11 inches of length. The Tarsier is arboreal, meaning they spend their entire life in trees. Their tiny bodies, big ears, interesting hands and toes, and their HUGE eyes are what make them look cute and cuddly.

1 Anatomy
2 Reproduction
3 Communication
4 Ecology
5 Gallery
6 Related References
7 See Also

Anatomy

Tarsiers are small creatures with huge eyes and big ears, they are about the same size as squirrels. These characteristics help the Tarsiers to hunt at night. The Tarsiers' neck is specially designed so that they can turn their heads 180 degrees, (that is all the way around). Their fur is mostly all gray colored. Their tail is mostly just naked except for the tuft of hair at the tip of the tail, it helps them cling on to trees they live in. [1] Tarsiers cannot walk on land, if they happen to be on land they hop. At the ends of each of their fingers and toes, they have pads. These pads help them climb trees very well. [2]

Reproduction

Tarsiers' mating season is usually from April to May. The pregnancy or gestation of a female Tarsier is up to 180 days, (6 months). The female's estrus cycle lasts 25-28 days. The female give birth to one baby per gestation. When a baby Tarsier is born, it is already well developed, its born well furred and with its eyes already open. They are able to move about after only two days. The mother carries the baby around with her mouth or on her belly, they don't build nests. A baby Tarsier can climb after two days and jump after four days. After about nineteen days young Tarsiers can already move around like adults. It is breast-fed up to about sixty days. Tarsiers can live up to twelve to twenty years old. [3]

Communication

The Tarsier uses many different ways of communication, even though it is a less vocal animal than many other animals. They use calls that are often used as territorial maintenance and male-female spacing. Its "loud call" is a loud piercing single note. It sounds similar to a soft bird-like twill. And when several Tarsiers come together it sounds like a loud chirping, grasshopper-like sound. There is a distressed call made by infants when they are separated from their mothers. It is also the call that males make to their mates during mating season. [4]

Ecology

Tarsiers are arboreal which means they live in and around the base of tree trunks and the roots of plants such as bamboo. They are nocturnal which means they hunt at night for prey. At day time they hide in hollows close to ground to sleep, most Tarsiers live in groups larger than just one female and one male. When kept in captivity they all either huddle together, or intertwine their tails. Tarsiers' main predators are mostly just human hunters and feral cats, neglected from nearby communities. Tarsiers are carnivores, they live on animal prey. They mostly eat insects, (cockroaches, crickets) sometimes reptiles, birds, and bats. Tarsiers in captivity will eat live shrimp or fish. Tarsiers live on islands, like the islands of Smar, Leyte, Bohol, and Mindanao in the Philippines. [5]