The species of this genus are all confined to the island of Madagascar and some of the smaller adjacent islands. They are gregarious, living in large companies in the forests, feeding on fruits, insects, and such small animals, birds, and lizards {68}as they may capture. Like the Howlers of S. America and the Gibbons of the East Indies, they are very noisy. Their agility is wonderfully great, and is displayed chiefly in the evening. During the brighter hours of the day they sit somnolent, either alone with their heads buried between their arms, their tail coiled round the neck, or in twos or threes embracing each other with their arms. In walking they use their fore-limbs less as hands, and more as feet than do the members of the next family--the _Indrisinæ_--both when on the ground, as well as when climbing among the trees. I. THE RUFFED LEMUR. LEMUR VARIUS. _Lemur macaco_, _var._ Schreber, Säugeth., p. 142, pl. 40 B (1775). _Lemur macaco et L. ruber_, Geoffr., Ann. Mus., xix., p. 159 (1812). _Lemur varius_, Is. Geoffr., Cat. Méth. Primates, p. 71, no. 2 (1851); Schl., Mus. Pays. Bas., vii., p. 301 (1876); Milne-Edwards et Grandid., H. N. Madag., Mamm., Atlas, pls. 123-129 (1690). (_Plate VII._) CHARACTERS.--Face and top of head black; a stripe over the eyes, ridge of nose and tip of nostrils, creamy-white; a patch on the shoulder, the inside of the fore-legs, the inner surface of body, a patch on the front of the thighs, the inner side of the limbs, and the feet, black; tail black, washed with white on the upper surface; rest of body creamy-white. PLATE VII. [Illustration: THE RED-RUFFED LEMUR.] {69}The Ruffed or Variable Lemur derives its name from the remarkable variability of its external markings: so much is this the case, indeed, that not a few of them have been described as distinct species. This variability appears to be entirely individual, and is by no means constant. The Black-mantled variety has the back of the neck, the shoulders and interscapular region entirely black. Another form has the ears, the ruff, and a bar across the muzzle extending over and in front of the eyes, joining the ruff, pure white; the fore-arms, legs, a bar across the buttocks joining the thighs greyish-white; face, legs, and tail black; a ring encircling the body like a belt between the fore- and hind-limbs, yellowish-white; rest of body dark reddish-brown. A third variety has the ears, ruff, and outer side of the arms and legs pure white; the flanks rusty-red, the rest of the body black.