A group of lemurs is popularly called a “conspiracy,” one of the playful collective nouns English has for animal groups.1Word Smarts. The Strangest Collective Nouns in English – Word Smarts Researchers and zoo keepers almost always say “troop” or just “group.” The phrase fits only loosely anyway, because lemur societies are unusual among mammals, and in many species the females run them.2Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. The Island of Female Power? Intersexual Dominance Relationships in the Lemurs of Madagascar
Conspiracy, Troop, or Group
Names like “a murder of crows” and “a flamboyance of flamingos” are old-style collective nouns for animal groups.3Word Smarts. The Strangest Collective Nouns in English – Word Smarts “A conspiracy of lemurs” sits in the same playful family.4Word Smarts. The Strangest Collective Nouns in English – Word Smarts No single origin story for “conspiracy” is documented; the phrase seems to have spread online and through trivia, so it’s best treated as modern folklore.
In field reports and at zoos, a lemur group is usually called a troop, the same word used for many monkeys. For pairs or small family units, people say “group” or “pair” instead. “A troop of ring-tailed lemurs” is the safe choice in formal writing.
In casual conversation or a zoo photo caption, “conspiracy” is understood as a joke. In a school report or news story, “troop” or “group” is expected. If unsure, “group” is never wrong.
Who Leads a Lemur Troop
No other group of mammals has female dominance as widespread as lemurs do.5Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. The Island of Female Power? Intersexual Dominance Relationships in the Lemurs of Madagascar In ring-tailed lemurs, all adult females outrank all males, even though the sexes are the same size.6PubMed Central. Androgen levels and female social dominance in Lemur catta In pairs of several lemur species, females pushed males aside and cuffed, bit, or lunged at them far more often than the reverse.7PubMed Central. Female rule in lemurs is ancestral and hormonally mediated
In many mammals, males are larger and win contests, so this is unusual. One idea is that Madagascar’s food is scarce and unpredictable, and female dominance gives mothers first access to it.
Watch a troop and you can see it. A female takes a favored feeding spot and the male steps away, and males often wait to eat until after the females. Fights tend to be brief displacements more than long brawls.
Within a ring-tailed troop, mothers outrank their daughters, and older sisters usually outrank younger ones.8PubMed. Long-term changes in dominance ranks among ring-tailed lemurs at Berenty Reserve, Madagascar The exception is that young daughters of high-ranking mothers can rank just below their mothers.9PubMed. Long-term changes in dominance ranks among ring-tailed lemurs at Berenty Reserve, Madagascar Male ranks shift more than female ranks, and larger males tend to rank higher.10PubMed. Long-term changes in dominance ranks among ring-tailed lemurs at Berenty Reserve, Madagascar The adult females in a troop are typically relatives, so rank follows family lines, while males are more like newcomers who come and go.
Female-led doesn’t mean one queen. A high-ranking female wins most face-offs with those below her, but she isn’t directing travel or making decisions for everyone.
How Lemurs Talk to Their Group
Redfronted lemurs grunt almost constantly, and most when there is a risk of getting separated.11PubMed Central. On the function of redfronted lemur’s close calls Grunts during social contact seem to signal friendly intent, so they work like a greeting, meaning the caller intends no harm.12PubMed Central. On the function of redfronted lemur’s close calls Other calls fit moments like resting or moving off as a group.13PubMed Central. On the function of redfronted lemur’s close calls In dense forest, lemurs lose sight of one another quickly, and a steady background of calls lets each animal keep track of the others.
Night-active species lean on sound even more. Woolly lemurs are nocturnal, when sight is limited, and their pairs use calls to space out and coordinate.14PubMed. The role of acoustic signaling for spacing and group coordination in a nocturnal, pair-living primate, the western woolly lemur (Avahi occidentalis)
Lemurs That Live in Pairs or Alone
Not all lemurs live in troops. Indris live in stable families made up of a mated pair plus up to four young.15PubMed. Evidence of genetic monogamy in the lemur Indri (Indri indri) In about 92% of births the father was the pair’s own male.16PubMed. Evidence of genetic monogamy in the lemur Indri (Indri indri) Indri families defend territories and sing.17The European Zoological Journal. Territory exclusivity and intergroup encounters in the indris (Mammalia: Primates: Indridae: Indri indri) upon methodological tuning
Mouse lemurs search for food alone at night but sleep in groups by day.18Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. Who to sleep with? Daytime sleeping associations in nocturnal gray mouse lemurs Golden brown mouse lemur sleeping groups kept the same members even as they changed sites.19PubMed. Social organization of the golden brown mouse lemur (Microcebus ravelobensis) Calling these species “solitary” misses half their lives.
For these smaller units, “pair” or “family group” suits indris, and “sleeping group” suits mouse lemurs, though “conspiracy” can still apply playfully. Lemur groups also tend to differ from monkey groups: they are often smaller with more even sex ratios, and some split up by season.
Scent and Rank Among Males
Male ring-tailed lemurs rub their wrist glands and tails to display status.20PubMed Central. Costs of injury for scent signalling in a strepsirrhine primate Dominant males “stink-fight” by waving scented tails at each other.21PubMed Central. Costs of injury for scent signalling in a strepsirrhine primate Males also mark more over the scent of injured rivals.22PubMed Central. Costs of injury for scent signalling in a strepsirrhine primate Females mark too, using genital glands.
Scent lasts after the animal has gone, telling a later visitor who was there. That lets males compete without a physical fight.
How Troops Change Over Time
Ring-tailed males usually leave their birth troop around age 4.23PubMed. Long-term changes in dominance ranks among ring-tailed lemurs at Berenty Reserve, Madagascar Males don’t mate in their birth group but do in new ones, so leaving is part of how they eventually breed.24PubMed. Evaluation of male inter-troop transfer as a mating strategy among ring-tailed lemurs on St. Catherines Island, USA Females stay put in the usual picture, but in some places they leave too, often mother and daughter together.25PubMed. Genetic Evidence for Male and Female Dispersal in Wild Lemur catta
Troops themselves can split. Persistent aggression can drive out certain females.26PubMed. Troop fission in wild ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) at Berenty, Madagascar Relatives then join them, so the new group forms around related animals, and a male follows later.27PubMed. Troop fission in wild ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) at Berenty, Madagascar
Neighboring troops also clash over boundaries.28PubMed. Characterizing group and individual engagement in intergroup encounters between small groups of ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) on St. Catherines Island, USA In sifakas, most clashes reach chases.29PubMed Central. Intergroup encounters in Verreaux’s sifakas (Propithecus verreauxi): who fights and why?