It looks like this small creature is playing a game, right? But when a baby ring-tailed lemur wraps its tail around or gives it a tug, it"s actually working on crucial skills. The infants spend their early weeks hanging tight to their mom, first clinging to her belly and later to her back. As they grow, they separate from their mom, and tail-chasing becomes part of how they learn balance, coordination and group play. These primates use their long tails for communication as well. Raised like flags during group movement, the tails help them stick together in open terrain. Loud, rhythmic calls, scent markings and "stink fights" between males add to the social drama.
Ring-tailed lemur
Today in History
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Serra de Tramuntana, Balearic Islands, Majorca, Spain
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Celebrating Charles Darwin
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Prasat Phanom Rung temple ruins, Thailand
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Daiichi Tadami River Bridge, Fukushima, Japan
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Trullo buildings in Alberobello, Apulia, Italy
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Happy Easter!
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Rolling hills of the Palouse, Washington, United States
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Today, a nation was born
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World Oceans Day
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Coco Beach, Goa, India
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Pride in London
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Alps of the sea
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2024 Toronto International Film Festival
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The bears of summer
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International Rock Day
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Swedish wilderness
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Taking a New Year nap
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Wheatear, Peak District National Park, England
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Finding beauty in ruins
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Palace of Westminster, London, England
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A remote oasis in Texas
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Art installation of umbrellas, Borough Market, London, England
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World Giraffe Day
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The Bahamas
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An iridescent view
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Meet for lunch?
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Camels in the desert, United Arab Emirates
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Waitangi Day in New Zealand
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Lion cubs, South Africa
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Happy Fathers Day!