Seasonal effects on sleeping site ecology in a nocturnal pair-living lemur (Avahi occidentalis)

Seasonal changes may have a strong effect on the safety of sleeping sites in arboreal primates. For example, changes in vegetation thickness may impact predation risk and energy expenditure related to thermoregulation. We investigated how seasonality influenced sleeping site characteristics and usage pattern in an arboreal primate living in a highly seasonal environment. The western woolly lemur (Avahi occidentalis) lives in the dry deciduous forest of northwestern Madagascar, where leaf coverage greatly varies across the year. We examined the hypothesis that these lemurs change their sleeping site behavior dependent on season. We collected data on sleeping site height and location, and characterized usage patterns in six radiotagged pairs between May and December 2008. During the late dry season, pairs preferentially slept in the middle part of a tree. In contrast, there was no height preference during the early rainy season. The lemurs used more sleeping sites during the early rainy than during the late dry season and stayed more days at the same sleeping tree in the late dry season. Our findings support the hypothesis that season affects sleeping site selection in an arboreal primate species living in a highly seasonal environment. During the late dry season, western woolly lemurs are particularly conspicuous to hunters and we therefore suggest a better monitoring of the forest in this season to guarantee their future survival.