Because of their ugly appearance, the Aye-aye monkey is considered a bad omen and is the target of hunting.

The island of Madagascar is known as the “land forgotten by time”, perhaps that’s why the collection of plants and animals is unique and very bizarre. About 75% of the animals are found only on the island and cannot be found anywhere else on Earth.

Madagascar is famous for its group of primates endemic to the island. The Aye Aye monkey is a rather special member of the primate family in this place.

Madagascar mountain forest, inhabited by Aye Aye monkeys.

An average Aye Aye monkey weighs 3kg, and is about 40cm long, with a fluffy tail, as long as the body. The body is covered with long and thick dark brown fur, making them look like a shaggy wool, looking at them in winter will make us feel quite warm.

With the adult Aye Aye monkeys, the ears look like bat ears, the eyes are big and round and the irises are slightly yellow-brown.

Interesting characteristics of Aye Aye monkeys that you should know:

The Aye Aye is in the same clade as humans, monkeys and apes. They live in a hole in a tree and are solitary, rarely in groups. Aye Aye does not move by jumping and clinging to trees like other primates, but walks on the ground. They sleep all day and are active at night, their big eyes are the advantage that helps them see in the dark.

All of Aye Aye’s fingers are long and thin, but the third is particularly long. They often listen to noises to find larvae in the bark of trees, and studies show that Aye Aye has the ability to sense insect movements at a depth of 3.4 m.

The Aye Aye’s incisors grow continuously and are used to gnaw the bark to support the fingers to get food from within the bark. In addition to the larvae, insects are a regular food, they also eat fruits, eggs and bamboo shoots.

They don’t have a breeding season or in other words, they can give birth any time they want, but a female only gives birth to 2-3 cubs a year, which is quite planned. The average lifespan of this species is 10 years.

Dangers are lurking Aye Aye monkeys

They are in an endangered state but also critically endangered.

The reason for this is due to increasing deforestation, humans have taken over the habitat as well as food sources of animals, causing them to destroy crops in search of food.

The second reason is extremely superstitious. Indigenous people on the island of Madagascar believe that encountering this Aye Aye monkey will bring bad things, especially related to death, so when encountering them, they are caught and stabbed in the eye.

If not protected, the day Aye Aye monkeys only appear in books will not be far away.