Colugos
   HOME
*



picture info

Colugos
Colugos () are arboreal gliding mammals that are native to Southeast Asia. Their closest evolutionary relatives are primates. There are just two living species of colugos: the Sunda flying lemur (''Galeopterus variegatus'') and the Philippine flying lemur (''Cynocephalus volans''). These two species make up the entire family Cynocephalidae () and order Dermoptera (not to be confused with Dermaptera, an order of insects known as earwigs). Although they are called "flying lemurs", the colugos are not lemurs and do not fly. Instead, they glide as they leap among trees. They are the most capable gliders of all gliding mammals. A fur-covered membrane, called a patagium, connects to the face, paws, and tail. This enables them to glide in the air for distances of up to between trees. They are also known as cobegos. Flying lemurs and regular lemurs (Lemuriformes) form a mirorder together (called primatomorpha). However, notably, the haplorhini are sister to the regular lemurs within th ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Dermotherium
''Dermotherium'' is a genus of fossil mammals closely related to the living colugos, a small group of gliding mammals from Southeast Asia. Two species are recognized: ''D. major'' from the Late Eocene of Thailand, based on a single fragment of the lower jaw, and ''D. chimaera'' from the Late Oligocene of Thailand, known from three fragments of the lower jaw and two isolated upper molars. In addition, a single isolated upper molar from the Early Oligocene of Pakistan has been tentatively assigned to ''D. chimaera''. All sites where fossils of ''Dermotherium'' have been found were probably forested environments and the fossil species were probably forest dwellers like living colugos, but whether they had the gliding adaptations of the living species is unknown. Some features of the teeth differentiate ''Dermotherium'' from both living colugo species, but other features are shared with only one of the two. The third lower incisor, lower canine, and third lower premolar at least are ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Philippine Flying Lemur
The Philippine flying lemur or Philippine colugo (''Cynocephalus volans''), known locally as ''kagwang'', is one of two species of colugo or "flying lemurs". It is monotypic of its genus. Although it is called "flying lemur", the Philippine flying lemur is neither a lemur nor does it fly. Instead, it glides as it leaps among trees. The ''kagwang'' belongs to the order Dermoptera that contains only two species, one of which is found in the Philippines, while the other, the Sunda flying lemur, is found in Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. Recent research from genetic analysis suggests two other species, the Bornean flying lemur and the Javan flying lemur, may exist, as well, but they have yet to be officially classified. Both species of Dermoptera are classified under the grandorder Euarchonta, which includes treeshrews and primates, as well as an extinct order of mammals, the Plesiadapiformes. Habitat and ecology The Philippine flying lemur is endemic to the south ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Toothcomb
A toothcomb (also tooth comb or dental comb) is a dental structure found in some mammals, comprising a group of front teeth arranged in a manner that facilitates grooming, similar to a hair comb. The toothcomb occurs in lemuriform primates (which includes lemurs and lorisoids), treeshrews, colugos, hyraxes, and some African antelopes. The structures evolved independently in different types of mammals through convergent evolution and varies both in dental composition and structure. In most mammals the comb is formed by a group of teeth with fine spaces between them. The toothcombs in most mammals include incisors only, while in lemuriform primates they include incisors and canine teeth that tilt forward at the front of the lower jaw, followed by a canine-shaped first premolar. The toothcombs of colugos and hyraxes take a different form with the individual incisors being serrated, providing multiple tines per tooth. The toothcomb is usually used for grooming. While licking ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Strepsirrhines
Strepsirrhini or Strepsirhini (; ) is a suborder of primates that includes the lemuriform primates, which consist of the lemurs of Madagascar, galagos ("bushbabies") and pottos from Africa, and the lorises from India and southeast Asia. Collectively they are referred to as strepsirrhines. Also belonging to the suborder are the extinct adapiform primates which thrived during the Eocene in Europe, North America, and Asia, but disappeared from most of the Northern Hemisphere as the climate cooled. Adapiforms are sometimes referred to as being "lemur-like", although the diversity of both lemurs and adapiforms does not support this comparison. Strepsirrhines are defined by their "wet" (moist) rhinarium (the tip of the snout) – hence the colloquial but inaccurate term "wet-nosed" – similar to the rhinaria of canines and felines. They also have a smaller brain than comparably sized simians, large olfactory lobes for smell, a vomeronasal organ to detect pheromones, and a bicornuate ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Flying And Gliding Animals
A number of animals are capable of aerial locomotion, either by powered flight or by gliding. This trait has appeared by evolution many times, without any single common ancestor. Flight has evolved at least four times in separate animals: insects, pterosaurs, birds, and bats. Gliding has evolved on many more occasions. Usually the development is to aid canopy animals in getting from tree to tree, although there are other possibilities. Gliding, in particular, has evolved among rainforest animals, especially in the rainforests in Asia (most especially Borneo) where the trees are tall and widely spaced. Several species of aquatic animals, and a few amphibians and reptiles have also evolved this gliding flight ability, typically as a means of evading predators. Types Animal aerial locomotion can be divided into two categories: powered and unpowered. In unpowered modes of locomotion, the animal uses aerodynamic forces exerted on the body due to wind or falling through the air. ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Patagium
The patagium (plural: patagia) is a membranous body part that assists an animal in obtaining lift when gliding or flight. The structure is found in extant and extinct groups of flying and gliding animals including bats, birds, some dromaeosaurs, pterosaurs, gliding mammals, some flying lizards, and flying frogs. The patagium that stretches between an animal's hind limbs is called the uropatagium (especially in bats) or the interfemoral membrane. Bats In bats, the skin forming the surface of the wing is an extension of the skin of the abdomen that runs to the tip of each digit, uniting the forelimb with the body. The patagium of a bat has four distinct parts: #Propatagium: the patagium present from the neck to the first digit. #Dactylopatagium: the portion found within the digits. #Plagiopatagium: the portion found between the last digit and the hindlimbs. #Uropatagium: the posterior portion of the flap between the two hindlimbs. Pterosaurs In the flying pterosaurs, the patag ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Primate
Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including humans). Primates arose 85–55 million years ago first from small terrestrial mammals, which adapted to living in the trees of tropical forests: many primate characteristics represent adaptations to life in this challenging environment, including large brains, visual acuity, color vision, a shoulder girdle allowing a large degree of movement in the shoulder joint, and dextrous hands. Primates range in size from Madame Berthe's mouse lemur, which weighs , to the eastern gorilla, weighing over . There are 376–524 species of living primates, depending on which classification is used. New primate species continue to be discovered: over 25 species were described in the 2000s, 36 in the 2010s, and three in the 2020s. Primates have large bra ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Primate
Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including humans). Primates arose 85–55 million years ago first from small terrestrial mammals, which adapted to living in the trees of tropical forests: many primate characteristics represent adaptations to life in this challenging environment, including large brains, visual acuity, color vision, a shoulder girdle allowing a large degree of movement in the shoulder joint, and dextrous hands. Primates range in size from Madame Berthe's mouse lemur, which weighs , to the eastern gorilla, weighing over . There are 376–524 species of living primates, depending on which classification is used. New primate species continue to be discovered: over 25 species were described in the 2000s, 36 in the 2010s, and three in the 2020s. Primates have large bra ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Primatomorpha
The Primatomorpha are a proposed mirorder of mammals containing the flying lemurs (order Dermoptera or colugos) and lemurs (Strepsirrhini, adapiformes and lemuriformes). However, notably, the haplorhini are sister to the lemurs, together forming the primate (Plesiadapiformes and descendents) order within this group. Primatomorpha is sister to Scandentia, together forming the Euarchonta. The term "Primatomorpha" first appeared in the general scientific literature in 1991 (K.C. Beard) and 1992 (Kalandadze, Rautian). Major DNA sequence analyses of predominantly nuclear sequences (Murphy et al., 2001) support the Euarchonta hypothesis, while a major study investigating mitochondrial sequences supports a different tree topology (Arnason et al., 2002). A study investigating retrotransposon presence/absence data has claimed strong support for Euarchonta (Kriegs et al., 2007). Some interpretations of the molecular data link Primates and Dermoptera in a clade (mirorder) known as Prima ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  




Sunda Flying Lemur
The Sunda flying lemur (''Galeopterus variegatus''), also known as Sunda colugo, Malayan flying lemur and Malayan colugo, is a colugo species. It is native throughout Southeast Asia ranging from southern Myanmar, Thailand, southern Vietnam, Malaysia to Singapore and Indonesia. Although it is called "flying lemur", the Sunda flying lemur is not a lemur and does not fly. Instead, it glides as it leaps among trees. It is strictly arboreal, is active at night, and feeds on soft plant parts such as young leaves, shoots, flowers, and fruits. After a 60-day gestation period, a single offspring is carried on the mother's abdomen held by a large skin membrane. It is a forest-dependent species. The head-body length of Sunda flying lemur is about . Its tail length measures , and it weighs . The Sunda flying lemur is protected by national legislation. The Sunda flying lemurs are often hunted by local people with spears or other lethal equipment for various reasons such as food and fur. Habi ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Galeopterus
The Sunda flying lemur (''Galeopterus variegatus''), also known as Sunda colugo, Malayan flying lemur and Malayan colugo, is a colugo species. It is native throughout Southeast Asia ranging from southern Myanmar, Thailand, southern Vietnam, Malaysia to Singapore and Indonesia. Although it is called "flying lemur", the Sunda flying lemur is not a lemur and does not fly. Instead, it glides as it leaps among trees. It is strictly arboreal, is active at night, and feeds on soft plant parts such as young leaves, shoots, flowers, and fruits. After a 60-day gestation period, a single offspring is carried on the mother's abdomen held by a large skin membrane. It is a forest-dependent species. The head-body length of Sunda flying lemur is about . Its tail length measures , and it weighs . The Sunda flying lemur is protected by national legislation. The Sunda flying lemurs are often hunted by local people with spears or other lethal equipment for various reasons such as food and fur. Habi ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Lemuriformes
Lemuriformes is an infraorder of primate that falls under the suborder Strepsirrhini. It includes the lemurs of Madagascar, as well as the galagos and lorisids of Africa and Asia, although a popular alternative taxonomy places the lorisoids in their own infraorder, Lorisiformes. Lemuriform primates are characterized by a toothcomb, a specialized set of teeth in the front, lower part of the mouth mostly used for combing fur during grooming. Evolutionary history Lemuriform origins are unclear and debated. American paleontologist Philip Gingerich proposed that lemuriform primates evolved from one of several genera of European adapids based on similarities between the front lower teeth of adapids and the toothcomb of extant lemuriforms; however, this view is not strongly supported due to a lack of clear transitional fossils. Instead, lemuriforms may be descended from a very early branch of Asian cercamoniines or sivaladapids that immigrated to northern Africa. Until discov ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]