Galagoides granti (Thomas & Wroughton, 1907)
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publication ID |
https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6657019 |
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DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6656965 |
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persistent identifier |
https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03D2E067-FFC8-FFE1-FF9C-F64D63D8F5BA |
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treatment provided by |
Jonas |
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scientific name |
Galagoides granti |
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Mozambique Dwart Galago
French: Galago de Grant / German: Mosambik-Zwerggalago / Spanish: Galago pequeno de Mozambique
Other common names: Grant's Bushbaby, Grant's Dwarf Galago, Grant's Galago, Grant's Lesser Galago, Mozambique Lesser Galago
Taxonomy. Galago granti Thomas & Wroughton, 1907 View in CoL ,
Mozambique, Inhambane, Coguno.
Galago granti was named after the collector C. H. B. Grant. It has been classified in a number of ways. It was considered to be a subspecies of G. senegalensis granti by E. Schwarz in 1931, but a southern subspecies of Galago zanzibaricus granti , by P. Jenkins in 1987. In 1979, T. R. Olson placed it in the genus Galagoides as G. zanzibaricus granti . In 1996, P. Honess confirmed its status as a distinct species based on vocalizations, their sexual organs, and hair morphology. This species is variable in appearance, and here we treat the following forms provisionally as synonyms, although they may well be recognized as distinct with further research. The “Malawi Galago ” ( G. nyasae ) described by Elliot in 1907 is known from six specimens collected in the mountains south of Lake Nyasa (= Lake Malawi), southern Malawi, and the neighboring region of north-western Mozambique,it is here considered conspecific with G. granti . It is similar to the typical G. granti but is generally browner,less reddish above, and less yellowish above, with a less blackened tail. The facial pattern is indistinct with hardly any eye-rings, and the snout has a yellowish median stripe. The “Mount Thyolo Dwarf Galago ” is known only from two museum specimens collected on Mount Thyolo (= Mount Cholo) in southern Malawi. It is generally similar to the Lake Nyasa form except in body proportions. The dorsal pelage is light brown; the underside is creamygray; eye-rings are black; cheeks and throat are yellowish; and ears are large and not heavily pigmented. Finally, the “Kalwe Small Dwarf Galago ,” which is known from two specimens collected in the Misuku Hills of northern Malawi, may also be G. granti . It is much larger and brownish, with a dark brown tail tip and notably short ears. Recorded vocalizations from Kalwe are distinctive and merit further study, whereas those from Mount Thyolo are said to be broadly similar to G. granti . Monotypic.
Distribution. East African coast from the Rufiji River in SE Tanzania to the Limpopo River in SE Mozambique, also inland in montane areas (e.g. Thyolo Mts of W Malawi) and extending W into Chimanimani, Zimbabwe; a record from Mt Namuli in Mozambique requires verification. View Figure
Descriptive notes. Head-body 9-12 cm, tail 16-22 cm; weight 35-70 g. The Mozambique Dwarf Galago is generally reddish or red-olive above, and the underside is creamy yellow, with a less yellowish throat. The head is a darker reddish-gray, and the forehead is grayer than the top of the head. Thick black eye-rings are continuous with the black on the sides of the muzzle. There is a thick white stripe running from the forehead to the rhinarium. Skin of the long rounded ears is black. The tail is drab brown, darkened or even blackish on the terminal one-third, including the tip, and it is long and bushy with hairs of 20-25 mm.
Habitat. [Lowland evergreen, semi-evergreen, dry coastal, submontane evergreen and gallery forest and hilly (miombo) woodlands, thicket, and scrubland. Vegetation associated with tea plantations is also used. The Mozambique Dwarf Galago has been recorded to at least 1800 m above sea level. It prefers the undergrowth.
Food and Feeding. Little is known about the diet of the Mozambique Dwarf Galago . It is a faunivore-frugivore, supplementing insects and birds with fruit in the denser part of the understory at heights of 6-10 m above the ground. It has been seen clinging to tree-trunks, head-down, and eating exudates. Stomachs of sacrificed individuals have contained fruits, flowers, and insects. In 1983, R. Smithers reported seeing them congregate around mist nets and chewing off heads of birds caught in the nets.
Breeding. Little is known about breeding of the Mozambique Dwarf Galago . There are two birth seasons per year (February-March and August—October), butit is not known if individual females breed twice in the same year. They sometimes produce twins, but single young are typical.
Activity patterns. The Mozambique Dwarf Galago is nocturnal and arboreal. Like closely related species, it is an agile jumper, leaping between vertical supports, and it also uses quadrupedal climbing and walking or scurrying.
Movements, Home range and Social organization. The Mozambique Dwarf Galago is a solitary forager (90% of nighttime observations), but groups of up to six individuals have been reported sleeping in a tree hollow. A male’s territory (2-3 ha) overlaps those of one or two females (each c.2 ha). Most communication is with loud advertising counter-calls that are exchanged between conspecifics during the first two hours after sunset and last two hours before sunrise. These calls seem to be related to departing and gathering from the sleeping site. Sleeping sites are located 3-5-5 m off the ground and comprise tree holes, green leafy self-constructed nests, or nests made from twigs and lianas. Such sites are shared with as many as five conspecifics of mixed sex, other galago species (the Rondo Dwarf Galago , G. rondoensis ), and even diurnal squirrels. Mozambique Dwarf Galagos make a species-specific incremental call that begins quietly, increases and then decreases in volume, and is composed of 1-17 units, each made up of an increasing number of subunits. Such calls are given alone and in mixed sequences.
Status and Conservation. CITES Appendix II. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Mozambique Dwarf Galago is fairly widespread and common. It occurs in Quirimbas National Park in Mozambique; Litipo, Nambiga, and Rondo forest reserves and Selous Game Reserve in Tanzania; Chimanimani National Park and East Ngarima Reserve in Zimbabwe; and other forest reserves in Mozambique and southern Tanzania.
Bibliography. Anderson (2000, 2001), Bearder, Ambrose et al. (2003), Bearder, Honess & Ambrose (1995), Burgess et al. (2000), Butynski et al. (2006), Courtenay & Bearder (1989), Harcourt & Bearder (1989), Honess (1996), Honess & Bearder (1996), Jenkins (1987), Kingdon (1971, 1997), Lumsden & Masters (2001), Meester et al. (1986), Nash et al. (1989), Olson (1979), Perkin (2000, 2007), Skinner & Smithers (1990), Wallace, G. (2006).
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