A long walk for a tiny lemur: Nightly travel distances of Microcebus rufus

Movement is critical for animals’ dynamics and survival. However, the movement patterns of small-bodied animals (body mass <500 g) are rarely documented, given the difficulties in tracking them in their natural habitats. Here, we report the distance travelled by a small-bodied and nocturnal lemur (brown mouse lemur, Microcebus rufus ) in Ranomafana National Park, southeastern Madagascar, using telemetry and tracking data ( night-tracking from 5 individuals). We found that M. rufus travelled up to 840.41 m in one night with a maximum 1-hour step length of 502.90 m. Our data also showed that, on average, females (755.50 m) travelled further than males (381.90 m). We suggest that such long-distance movements could be a strategy to maintain their metabolic rate and budget activities, avoid predators, and/or respond to changes in food source distribution. Furthermore, such movements can have critical consequences on their ecological roles in the rainforest, contributing to the self-maintenance of diversity, health, and regeneration of the ecosystem.