| Native to Madagascar, this lemur is the largest nocturnal primate in the world and has unique features that set it apart. It has bat‐like ears that allow it to echo-locate and rodent-like ever-growing incisors – both unique among primates. It is most famous for its exceptionally long and skinny fingers. In fact, they are so long that the aye-aye’s hand accounts for about 41% of the total length of the forelimb. Researchers recently found yet another unique specialisation that sets the aye-aye apart from other primates: a sixth finger on each hand. Dissections were performed to analyse the anatomy of the hand and wrist. A seventh specimen was used to create a digital reconstruction of these anatomical structures following MRI scanning and manual segmentation – a technique similar to a medical scan that allows the anatomy to be viewed in three-dimensions in a digital space. Little is known about the actual population size of aye-ayes, but they are hard to find and a large-scale loss of their habitat suggests population decline. SOURCE: THE CONVERSATION |
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