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In this ��ѿ��ý Sounds bonus episode writer Katherine Rundell focusses on the lemur, one of Madagascar’s most distinctive and surprising inhabitants. Lemurs live in female-led troops, where an alpha female calls the shots. Ring-tailed lemurs bond by forming a “lemur ball”- a tightly packed, black-and-white cluster of bodies and rapidly beating hearts. Lemurs range dramatically in size, from the tiny Madame Berthe’s mouse lemur - to the now-extinct giant lemurs, once as large as men and lost after humans arrived on the island. And their very presence on Madagascar is a mystery: although their ancestors originated in Africa, they somehow made the journey across the ocean, likely by drifting on rafts of vegetation - a theory as improbable as it is widely accepted. Today, lemurs face serious threats. With over half of the 101 known species and subspecies endangered, and 94% at risk, their future is uncertain. This episode explores their resilience, their strange and beautiful biology, and the urgent need to protect what remains. Presented and written by Katherine Rundell Produced for ��ѿ��ý Audio in Bristol by Natalie Donovan