Philippine tarsier

Tarsiers are highly specialized primates with a very small body size, only 9 to 16 cm in size, 85 to 160 mm in length, 130 to 270 mm in tail length, and 80 to 165 grams in weight. They are extremely small primates. The fur on their backs is soft, gray with a silvery sheen, and the fur on their abdomens is light gray. They have round heads, plated snouts and necks, thin and hairless ear shells, and very large eyes, up to 16 mm in diameter. They have short forelimbs, long hind limbs, and round suction cups on the tips of their toes, which allow them to rest on many smooth surfaces. They have large, round heads, very large eyes, forward-facing facial discs, and thin orbital septa. Their eyes are adapted for night vision, and their retinas have no cones. They have short necks, which are characteristic of many jumping groups.

Tarsiers are native to Sumatra, Borneo, Celebes and the Philippines. They are now distributed in southern Sumatra and the Philippine islands of Samar, Leyte, Dinagat, Siargao, Bohol and Mindanao.
Tarsiers like to live in dense secondary forests and shrubs, and are also distributed in primary forests.

Tarsier (scientific name: Philippine tarsier), also known as tarsier, belongs to the primates, the suborder Simplorhinidae, the order Tarsieridae. There are 4 species in the world. In addition to the pygmy tarsier, there is another species that is also distributed on Sulawesi Island, called the Su Island tarsier; another is called the Philippine tarsier, which is distributed in Mindanao, Samar Island and Leyte Island in the Philippines; and there is also a species called the Sunda tarsier (also called the Malay tarsier, Bangka tarsier), which is distributed in the Greater Sunda Islands and Bangka Island in Singapore.

Tarsiers sleep during the day and move at night. They can jump between branches up to several meters, but they never move on the ground. They have a keen sense of hearing and their necks can rotate almost 360°. They mainly prey on insects and also eat small lizards. They move very quickly when catching food.

Females have 2 to 3 pairs of nipples, and the gestation period is about 180 days. They give birth to one baby per litter, and one baby per year. The baby is only 6 cm long after birth, covered with fur, and has open eyes. It can grab its mother or cling to a branch as soon as it is born.

Some people believe that there are many differences between tarsiers and prosimians, and they should belong to apes. Some people believe that prosimians and tarsiers in the Tertiary period have a common direct ancestor, or that tarsiers should be regarded as a transitional type from prosimians to apes. Some people also believe that they are highly specialized species. According to serum analysis, tarsiers are more closely related to monkeys than to prosimians, and their ear structure is also very similar to that of apes.

In 1921, when the last pygmy tarsier was made into a specimen and collected in a museum, people have never seen this animal again. Therefore, scientists believe that the pygmy tarsier may have become extinct. In 2008, this mouse-sized primate was accidentally discovered by scientists. It turned out that they had been hiding in the dense forests of Indonesia. American researchers went to the top of the mountain with an altitude of more than 2,100 meters with an Indonesian research team to explore. Finally, 4 pygmy tarsier were found and 2 males and 1 female individuals were successfully captured.

All are listed in the "World Conservation Union" (IUCN) ver.: 2008 Red List of Primates.

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