The Aye-Aye
One of Madagascar's most endangered speicies
What is the Aye-Aye?
the Aye-Aye is a small, unusual primate (Daubentonia madagascariensis) only found in the Northern East coast of Madagascar.it has really large eyes, bat-like ears, and a long bushy tail. For adaptation reasons, their third finger can grow up to THREE TIMES as big as their other fingers! Adult Aye-Ayes can grow up to 16 inches, tail length of two feet,and only weigh up to 4 pounds
The Aye-Aye's habitat
They prefer to live in forests,mangroves,and bamboo thickets,but many live in cultivated ares due to deforestation. They are nocturnal and prefer to survive alone, but can make little tribes. They build nests up in high trees. They are omnivores and only eat nuts,insect larvea,fruit,nector,seeds,and even fungi! To eat fruit, they use their long middle finger to stick into a fruit then using their finger as like a fork.
Why are They Extinct?
Aye-ayes are endangered due to habitat destruction/fragmentation. Also, many people in Madagascar will kill it if they see it because they believe it brings bad luck or death. More recently, some people have started killing aye-ayes for food (bush meat).
The Aye-Aye were confirmed endangered in the year 2000
What can we do to prevent extinction?
Anyone can help by donating and volenteering to help out the animal. People in Madagascar can also help by stop cutting down trees and taking all the resources the Aye-Aye needs to survive. The Aye-Aye are being driven into public streets due to having no home and ends up dieing by humans. Many Aye-Ayes are being held up in public zoos, killing them.