A lemur is a member of the biological infraorder Lemuriformes, a prosimian and strepsirrhine primate that is endemic to the
island of Madagascar. The term "lemur" is derived from the Latin word lemures, meaning "spirits of the night" or "ghosts".
This likely refers to their large, reflective eyes and the wailing cries of some species (the Indri in particular).
Galagos, also known as bushbabies, bush babies or nagapies (meaning "little night monkeys" in Afrikaans), are small, nocturnal
primates native to continental Africa, and make up the family Galagidae (also sometimes called Galagonidae). They are sometimes
included as a subfamily within the Lorisidae or Loridae. According to some accounts, the name bush baby comes from either
the animal's cries or appearance.
The sportive lemurs are the medium sized primates that make up the Lepilemuridae family. The family consists of only one extant
genus, Lepilemur, as well as the extinct genus Megaladapis. They are closely related to the other lemurs and exclusively live
on the island of Madagascar. For a time, this family was named Megaladapidae, but the current name was given precedence.
The Aye-aye (Daubentonia madagascariensis) is a lemur, a strepsirrhine primate native to Madagascar that combines rodent-like
teeth with a long, thin middle finger to fill the same ecological niche as a woodpecker. It is the world's largest nocturnal
primate, and is characterized by its unusual method of finding food; it taps on trees to find grubs, then gnaws holes in the
wood and inserts its elongated middle finger to pull the grubs out.
Lorisidae (or sometimes Loridae) is a family of strepsirrhine primates. The lorids are all slim arboreal animals and include
the lorises, pottos and angwantibos. Lorids live in tropical, central Africa as well as in south and southeast Asia.
Lorisiformes are a group of primates found throughout Africa and Asia. Members of this infraorder include the galagos and
the lorises. As strepsirrhines, they are related to the lemurs. Order Primates Suborder Strepsirrhini: non-tarsier prosimians
Infraorder Lemuriformes Infraorder Lorisiformes Family Lorisidae: lorises Family Galagidae: galagos Suborder Haplorrhini:
tarsiers, monkeys and apes
