Duke Lemur Center
Encyclopedia
The Duke Lemur Center is an 85 acres (34.4 ha) sanctuary for rare and endangered prosimian
primates, located at Duke University
in Durham
, North Carolina
. It is the largest sanctuary for prosimian primates in the world.
The Duke Lemur Center is open to the public through tours, for which visitors must make an appointment.
colony of approximately 90 individuals, belonging to John Buettner-Janusch
, was relocated from the Center for Prosimian Biology at Yale University
to Duke University, creating the Duke Lemur Center (DLC). Through the 1970s the colony grew to approximately 700 individuals representing 33 species. The current colony ranges between 250 and 300 animals, representing approximately 25 species. Originally called the Duke University Primate Center (DUPC), the center's name was changed in April 2006 after a refocusing of the scientific goals and overall mission. Specimens from its scientific collection may thus be assigned the code DPC.
The mission of the Duke University Lemur Center is to "promote research and understanding of prosimians and their natural habitat as a means of advancing the frontiers of knowledge, to contribute to the educational development of future leaders in international scholarship and conservation and to enhance the human condition by stimulating intellectual growth and sustaining global biodiversity."
The Lemur Center, the only university-based facility in the world devoted to the study of prosimian primates, is home to the world's largest colony of endangered primates, including more than 250 lemur
s, bush babies
and loris
es. More than 85 percent of the center's inhabitants were born on site.
In 1997, the center began a program to reintroduce Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur
s into the 5500 acres (2,225.8 ha) Betampona Natural Reserve in Madagascar
, the first return of any prosimian primates to the island nation.
In 2009 and 2010 the center completed two new buildings for housing lemurs. The first building was completed in 2009, and is a 14922 square feet (1,386.3 m²) facility (including exterior animal runs) with 7056 square feet (655.5 m²) of interior space. It can house up to 60 animals that can be released into the 69 acres (27.9 ha) Duke Forest if weather permits. The second building was completed in 2010 and is a 20637 square feet (1,917.2 m²) facility (including exterior animal runs) with 9883 square feet (918.2 m²) of interior space. Together they can house 140 lemurs. The buildings are designed with animal housing wings radiating from a central core which houses common resources like laboratories, exam rooms, food prep, bathrooms, and storage spaces. Both buildings are designed for low water and electricity use, and are LEED
registered. The total cost of the two-buildings, designed by architects Lord, Aeck & Sargent of Chapel Hill, North Carolina
, was $10.4 million.
Prosimian
Prosimians are a grouping of mammals defined as being primates, but not monkeys or apes. They include, among others, lemurs, bushbabies, and tarsiers. They are considered to have characteristics that are more primitive than those of monkeys and apes. Prosimians are the only primates native to...
primates, located at Duke University
Duke University
Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...
in Durham
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. It is the largest sanctuary for prosimian primates in the world.
The Duke Lemur Center is open to the public through tours, for which visitors must make an appointment.
History
In 1966, a prosimianProsimian
Prosimians are a grouping of mammals defined as being primates, but not monkeys or apes. They include, among others, lemurs, bushbabies, and tarsiers. They are considered to have characteristics that are more primitive than those of monkeys and apes. Prosimians are the only primates native to...
colony of approximately 90 individuals, belonging to John Buettner-Janusch
John Buettner-Janusch
John Buettner-Janusch , often called "B-J", was an American physical anthropologist who pioneered the application of molecular evolution methods, such as protein sequence comparison, to the field of primate evolution...
, was relocated from the Center for Prosimian Biology at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
to Duke University, creating the Duke Lemur Center (DLC). Through the 1970s the colony grew to approximately 700 individuals representing 33 species. The current colony ranges between 250 and 300 animals, representing approximately 25 species. Originally called the Duke University Primate Center (DUPC), the center's name was changed in April 2006 after a refocusing of the scientific goals and overall mission. Specimens from its scientific collection may thus be assigned the code DPC.
The mission of the Duke University Lemur Center is to "promote research and understanding of prosimians and their natural habitat as a means of advancing the frontiers of knowledge, to contribute to the educational development of future leaders in international scholarship and conservation and to enhance the human condition by stimulating intellectual growth and sustaining global biodiversity."
The Lemur Center, the only university-based facility in the world devoted to the study of prosimian primates, is home to the world's largest colony of endangered primates, including more than 250 lemur
Lemur
Lemurs are a clade of strepsirrhine primates endemic to the island of Madagascar. They are named after the lemures of Roman mythology due to the ghostly vocalizations, reflective eyes, and the nocturnal habits of some species...
s, bush babies
Galago
Galagos , also known as bushbabies, bush babies or nagapies , are small, nocturnal primates native to continental Africa, and make up the family Galagidae...
and loris
Loris
Loris is the common name for the strepsirrhine primates of the subfamily Lorisinae in family Lorisidae. Loris is one genus in this subfamily and includes the slender lorises, while Nycticebus is the genus for the slow lorises....
es. More than 85 percent of the center's inhabitants were born on site.
In 1997, the center began a program to reintroduce Black-and-white Ruffed Lemur
Black-and-white ruffed lemur
The black-and-white ruffed lemur is the more endangered of the two species of ruffed lemurs, both of which are endemic to the island of Madagascar. Despite having a larger range than the red ruffed lemur, it has a much smaller population that is spread out, living in lower population densities...
s into the 5500 acres (2,225.8 ha) Betampona Natural Reserve in Madagascar
Madagascar
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...
, the first return of any prosimian primates to the island nation.
In 2009 and 2010 the center completed two new buildings for housing lemurs. The first building was completed in 2009, and is a 14922 square feet (1,386.3 m²) facility (including exterior animal runs) with 7056 square feet (655.5 m²) of interior space. It can house up to 60 animals that can be released into the 69 acres (27.9 ha) Duke Forest if weather permits. The second building was completed in 2010 and is a 20637 square feet (1,917.2 m²) facility (including exterior animal runs) with 9883 square feet (918.2 m²) of interior space. Together they can house 140 lemurs. The buildings are designed with animal housing wings radiating from a central core which houses common resources like laboratories, exam rooms, food prep, bathrooms, and storage spaces. Both buildings are designed for low water and electricity use, and are LEED
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design consists of a suite of rating systems for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings, homes and neighborhoods....
registered. The total cost of the two-buildings, designed by architects Lord, Aeck & Sargent of Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
, was $10.4 million.
External links
- Duke University
- Nature: The Loneliest Aniamls (Chapter 4): Lemur survival in captivity at the Duke Lemur Center