Behavior
Ruffed lemurs, on average, spend 28% of the day feeding, 53% resting, and 19% traveling, although differences in resting and feeding durations have been observed between males and females, with females resting less and feeding more. They are diurnal; although peak activity occurs during the early morning and late afternoon or evening, resting usually occurs around midday. When resting, ruffed lemurs often sit hunched or upright. They are also frequently seen lying prone over a branch or sunbathing in a supine position with the limbs outstretched. When feeding, they will often hang upside-down by their hind feet, a type of suspensory behavior, which allows them to reach fruits and flowers.
Being highly arboreal, they spend the majority of their time in the high canopy throughout the day. Ruffed lemurs spend the majority of their time between 15 to 20 m (49 to 66 ft) above the forest floor, followed by 20 to 25 metres (66 to 82 ft) up, and are least frequently seen at 10 to 15 metres (33 to 49 ft). During the hot season, they will relocate to the lower canopy to help regulate their body temperature. In the cold season, ruffed lemurs are least active and may dedicate 2% of their resting time to sunbathing in order to warm up.
Long-term field research has shown that range size, group size, social systems, and territorial behavior vary widely, and may be greatly affected by food distribution and quality. It is generally agreed that the ruffed lemur social system is multi-male/multi-female with a fission-fusion society, although some populations of black-and-white ruffed lemur have been reported as monogamous. This social flexibility is suspected to improve survivability despite an inflexible feeding ecology.
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