Although protected by law, aye-ayes are threatened due to habitat loss and hunting, as some natives kill any aye-aye they encounter because they believe it brings bad luck. Human population growth and expansion and rainforest destruction cause the loss of aye-aye home ranges.

Aye-ayes may help to disperse fruiting tree seeds through their frugivory. They are also important predators of wood-boring beetle larvae.

The aye-aye’s reputation is, of course, entirely unfounded. However, because of the way the aye-aye is perceived, this perfectly harmless creature is often killed on sight.

Endangered (Population decreasing)

There are between 1,000 and 10,000 Aye Ayes left in the world.

Aye-ayes also have an unmistakeable skull and teeth. Unlike all other strepsirhines, they lack a toothcomb. The adult dental formula is 1/1, 0/0, 1/0, 3/3 = 18 (the deciduous dentition includes extra upper and lower incisors, premolars, and an upper canine). The adult incisors are tremendously enlarged and evergrowing.

The Aye Aye is a member of the Lemur family. It is a nocturnal primate, native to Madagascar. Chances are, because of their limited number, the Aye Aye is not legal to own as a pet.

1. Aye-ayes sleep in treetop nests they construct. Aye-ayes spend most of their lives high in the trees, especially the canopy. These nests can take up to 24 hours to construct and are often found in the forks or crowns of tall trees.

166 days

Madagascar

40 cmAdult

Diet

• Seeds. Canarium spp – seeds. Terminalia catappa – seeds.
• Nectar and flowers. Traveler’s tree (Ravenala madagascariensis) – nectar and flowers. Banana flower (Musa sp.) –
• Fruits. Ficus tree (Ficus spp.) –
• Bark and cankers. Intsia bijuga – cankers.
• Cultivated crops. Coconut (flesh and milk), banana, mango, and litchi/lychee.

2.3 kgAdult

Aye-ayes are dark brown or black and are distinguished by a bushy tail that is larger than their body. They also feature big eyes, slender fingers, and large, sensitive ears. Aye-ayes have pointed claws on all their fingers and toes except for their opposable big toes, which enable them to dangle from branches.

According to Sonnerat, the name “aye-aye” was a “cri d’exclamation & d’étonnement” (cry of exclamation and astonishment). If correct, then the name might have originated from Malagasy people saying “heh heh” to avoid saying the name of a feared, magical animal.

A new study, published in the journal Biology Letters, measured the extent to which the aye-aye has evolved similar features to squirrels, despite being more closely related to monkeys, chimps, and humans. The aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis).

By the mid-19th Century the aye-aye had been correctly identified as a primate, but its squirrel-like appearance is often cited as a striking example of “evolutionary convergence,” or how unrelated species can independently evolve the same traits.

Very few facilities around the world have aye-ayes under human care. In North America, they are only found at the Duke Lemur Center (Durham, NC), Cincinnati Zoo, Cleveland Zoo, Denver Zoo, San Diego Zoo, Omaha Zoo and Philadelphia Zoo.