The INDRI: a lemur LIKE NO OTHER

Only lemur of Madagascar with no tail, the Indri lemur is one of the Malagasy wildlife wonders for which a detour through the forests of eastern Madagascar is required.

Endemic endangered animal of which the conservation status under the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) is “Critically Endangered” Indri is now the center of attention and concerns.

The Indri babakoto: when the son of the father sings

Known as the Indri in the scientific community, this lemur is also called Babakoto by rural communities of eastern Madagascar. Translated “Son of the Father,” the Babakoto is aptly named, because with his size and appearance, it is the closest lemur humans.

With no tail unlike these congeners, the Indri Indri lemur is even able to sing! Certainly not like a diva, but her fondness for changes of notes when making its daily vocalizations, shows a certain ability to give “voice”, especially when it knows observed, or let’s say, when it wants to get attention.

Indri or Malagasy voice of forests

A recent study led to the national park of Andasibe-Mantadia and in the forest of Marimizaha in Madagascar, demonstrated that the singing of Indri Indri always begins by a kind of howling whose purpose is none other than drawing the attention of his companions, to incite them to accompany him in its singing.
Further to what, all the members of the group begin singing in heart for reasons that have not yet all been elucidated, but we already know that these singings serve in particular to mark the territory, precisely by being heard by all the inhabitants of the forest.

Something that younger Indri do not take very seriously, because according to the study “The singing of Babakoto”, the young Indri who have not reached their maturity yet, deliberately sing out of the tone!

By voluntarily not following the tone of the leaders, it turns out that these shameless young Indri sing out of the tone to get noticed from their elder brothers and their playfellows.
A behaviour, which one more time, reminds us strangely the complexity of the human behaviour.

If Indri stays enough far from the human, and even from the monkey Bonobo whom is the closest relative of the human, Indri is not the “son of father” (Babakoto) for nothing.

A festival is even dedicated to him since 2016.

The Indri Festival

The first edition having taken place at the end of August 2016 in the forest of the National Park of Andasibe-Mantadia, the impact of the festival remains at the time of writing this article, difficult to measure, but the festival Indri has already had a significant echo in the Malagasy local press.

Everyone now hopes that this event will promote the protection and interest around this species of lemur.

The hope is not obviously sufficient seen the scale of the work of conservation which must be achieved, so the implication of all is necessary.

Reason why us, tourism operators, but especially and before all Malagasy nature lovers, have to promote this event, the objective of which is the development of a sustainable and community tourism, which will favour the protection of The indri, but also many more species of lemurs which, let us remind it, are for the vast majority, endemic to Madagascar and in danger.

So many reasons which motivates us to write this article, hoping that you readers, and maybe future visitors, would be conquered by the idea to go to visit these surprising lemurs that are Indri Indri.

We saw it, Indris likes getting noticed, but they need that their singer’s career of forests is relieved by their fans: you, future visitors and nature lover.