This is one of the first pictures released of the first baby lemur to be born at Fota Wildlife Park in Cork.
The four-week-old male lemur, born to parents Pudden and Podge, emerged this week for the first time after spending three weeks in a tree nest built by his mother.
The ruffed lemur, an endangered species native to Madagascar off east Africa, is considered an “evolutionary enigma” as it is the only species of primate that builds a nest for newborns.
The baby lemur will grow up fast and will be foraging in the wild independently at 10 weeks. It will reach its full adult size, with a typical weight between 7lb-12lb, at six months.
There are fewer than 500 black and white ruffed lemurs left in the wild.
Fota is home to three of the 16 species of Lemur, two of which are the black and white and red ruffed species.
The ruffed lemurs live on separate islands in the lakes area of Fota Wildlife Park where staff hope to expand the collection of lemurs in the coming years.
A competition accepting suggestions for a suitable name for the baby lemur is now under way at fotawildlife.ie
Fota Wildlife Park is a joint project between the Zoological Society of Ireland and University College Cork.
It has been listed as one of Ireland’s top 10 visitor attractions (Central Statistics Office 2010) and is the most popular tourist destination in Cork.