biology

Red lemur

Red lemur is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Red lemur rather than just read about it. In short: The red lemur (Eulemur rufus), also known as the rufous brown lemur or northern red-fronted lemur, is a species of lemur from Madagascar. Until 2001, the species E. rufus was considered a subspecies of the common brown lemur, E. fulvus, after which it was classified as its own species.

Key takeaways

Red lemur belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Red lemur to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Red lemur from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The red lemur (Eulemur rufus), also known as the rufous brown lemur or northern red-fronted lemur, is a species of lemur from Madagascar. Until 2001, the species E. rufus was considered a subspecies of the common brown lemur, E. fulvus, after which it was classified as its own species. In December 2008, the species was split into two separate species, the red lemur, E. rufus, distributed in dry lowland forests in northwestern Madagascar, and the red-fronted lemur, E. rufifrons, distributed in southwest and eastern Madagascar. The species split was based on genetic and morphological evidence. Mitochondrial DNA analysis indicates that E. rufifrons may be more closely related to the common brown lemur (E. fulvus), white-headed lemur (E. albifrons) and Sanford's brown lemur (E. sanfordi) than it is to E. rufus. The red lemur's range covers dry deciduous forests in southwestern Madagascar between the Betsiboka River to the north and the Tsiribihina River to the south. The Tsiribihina River forms the boundary between E. rufus, which lives north of the river, and E. rufifrons, which lives south of the river. It has a head and body length of 35 to 48 centimetres (14 to 19 in) and with a 45 to 55 centimetres (18 to 22 in) tail. Its weight ranges between 2.2 and 2.3 kilograms (4.9 and 5.1 lb). It has a gray coat and black face, muzzle and forehead, plus a black line from the muzzle to the forehead, with white eyebrow patches. Males have white or cream colored cheeks and beards, while females have rufous or cream cheeks and beards that are less bushy than males. The species is currently listed by the IUCN as Vulnerable. The most important threats to the species are hunting, as well as habitat destruction resulting from slash-and-burn agriculture, clearing of land for pasture, fuelwood gathering and logging. The hunting level is viewed as unsustainable.

References

Further reading Scholz, Friederike; Kappeler, Peter M. (June 2004). "Effects of Seasonal Water Scarcity on the Ranging Behavior of Eulemur fulvus rufus". International Journal of Primatology. 25 (3): 599–613. doi:10.1023/b:ijop.0000023577.32587.0b. S2CID 23108766.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Red lemur

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Red lemur claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Red lemur before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Red lemur ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Red lemur

In research: Red lemur appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Red lemur in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Red lemur is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Arboreal mammals, Fauna listed on CITES Appendix I, IUCN Red List vulnerable species, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Red lemur outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Red lemur” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Red lemur in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Red lemur means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Red lemur out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Red lemur in simple terms?

Why does Red lemur matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Red lemur?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Red lemur.