The silky sifaka (Propithecus candidus) is a large lemur characterized by long, silky, white fur. It has a very restricted range in northeastern Madagascar, where it is known locally as the simpona. It is one of the rarest mammals on Earth. The silky sifaka is one of nine sifaka species (genus Propithecus), and one of four former subspecies of diademed sifaka (P. diadema). Studies in 2004 and 2007 compared external proportions, genetics, and craniodental anatomy supporting full species status, which has generally been accepted. The silky sifaka has a variable social structure, and lives in groups of two to nine individuals. It spends most of its day feeding and resting, though it also devotes a considerable amount of time to social behaviors, such as playing and grooming, as well as travelling. Females occasionally take priority over males during feeding. Like other eastern sifakas, it consumes mainly leaves and seeds, but also fruit, flowers, and even soil on occasion. It is a seasonal breeder and only mates one day a year during the start of the rainy season. As with other sifaka species, nonmaternal infant care is common. Group members of all ages and both sexes often groom, play with, occasionally carry, and even nurse infants that are not their own. The silky sifaka vocalizes frequently despite its moderately sized vocal repertoire consisting of seven adult calls. Like all other lemurs, it relies strongly on scent for communication. Males frequently scent-mark on top of scent marks made by other group members, particularly females. Males also gouge trees with their toothcomb (a special arrangement of the bottom, front teeth) prior to chest scent-marking. This chest marking results in males having brown-stained chests, the only visible trait that can be used to distinguish between adult males and adult females. The species is only found within a few protected areas in the rainforests of northeastern Madagascar, with the majority of the remaining population in Marojejy National Park and Anjanaharibe-Sud Special Reserve. A few groups have also been found in the Makira Forest Protected Area, the Betaolana Corridor, and some unprotected forest fragments. The silky sifaka is hunted throughout its range as no local fady (taboo) exists against eating this species. Habitat disturbance, such as slash-and-burn agriculture (tavy), illegal logging of precious woods (particularly rosewood) and fuel-wood, also occurs within the protected areas where it is found.
Etymology The name "sifaka" is a reference to a common general alarm vocalization given by western dry forest sifakas in which they emit an explosive, hiss-like "shee-faak" call several times in succession. On the east coast, local residents refer to the larger-bodied diademed sifaka as simpona, a name which refers to the species' sneeze-like "zzuss" alarm vocalizations. The calls are emitted in a variety of stressful circumstances such as presence of humans, falling trees, terrestrial predators, and after aggression between group members. The specific name, candidus, is Latin for "white", while the specific name of the taxonomic synonym sericeus is derived from the Greek word for "silk".
Taxonomy The silky sifaka was initially described in 1871 by French naturalist Alfred Grandidier in a formally published letter to French zoologist Alphonse Milne-Edwards. Grandidier's description was based on his own observations north of Antongil Bay in the last few months of 1870. He then named the species Propithecus candidus due to its white color, which he likened to that of Verreaux's sifaka (Propithecus verreauxi), but without the dark fur on its head or the ash-colored spot on the back. The first specimen was obtained in 1872 and provided by a "Monsieur Guinet", a planter from Sambava. The specimen allowed both Grandidier and Milne-Edwards to more thoroughly describe the species based on its skin, coat, and skull. Upon those findings, they changed the name to P. sericeus. Upon further review in 1875, Grandidier demoted the silky sifaka to a variety or "race" of the diademed sifaka. By the time German zoologist Ernst Schwarz standardized lemur taxonomy in 1931, P. sericeus had become a taxonomic synonym for the species, with the original name, Propithecus candidus, taking priority.
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