Ontogeny of Feeding Behavior of Eulemur fulvus in the Dry Forest of Mayotte

Abstract

Captive data show that juvenile mammals usually reproduce the diet of the adult. However, it is not known whether, in natural environments, the process of feeding maturation varies according to available foods and to adult choices. I examined the feeding ontogeny of Mayotte brown lemurs (Eulemur fulvus), a presumed introduced species, from birth to 12 mo old in the southern dry forest of Mayotte. The study focused on activities and diets of 4 mothers and their juveniles from 2 groups in 1999 and 2000. In 2001, we also observed 2 other dyads from each group for 2 mo (March/April). I assessed plant phenology in each group's home range. There are 4 phases of feeding ontogeny: (1) the 3 mo following birth are characterized by lactation, early bouts of exploration, and consumption; (2) the next 2 mo are characterized by feeding and social weaning; (3) during the sixth and seventh mo, the daily feeding activity rhythms of the mother and her juvenile are synchronized and diets largely overlap; (4) at 10–12 mo of age, the feeding juvenile is closer to other group members than to its mother. During their first year of life, especially before being weaned, juveniles eat several food items that are not ingested by their mothers. It appeared that the progressive overlap in dietary items and feeding synchrony between mother and juvenile depends on several types of leaming. There is a correlation between the availability of particular food resources with high nutritional quality and timing of reproduction and infant maturation.