Pygmy Tarsiers Re-discovered in Indonesia

Pygmy tarsiers, long believed extinct, have been found in Indonesia, according to a story in The Globe and Mail. In August, researchers from Texas A&M, led by Sharon Gursky-Doyen, trapped two males and a female in moutain-top mist nets on Mt. Rore Katimbo in Lore Lindu National Park in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. With distinctive eyes, the pygmy tarsiers are primates; they are"about the size of a small mouse;" they have claws instead of nails, which is a distinguishing feature.

Here's a short video from the researchers showing the pygmy tarsier running up a tree.

link to Texas A&M article.

• [Liz1388]

  Tsk, and the scientists have already killed at least one of these rare beasties. How long until the rare animal traffickers go there and hunt them down?

  As Thoreau said, “A man is rich in proportion to the number of things he can afford to let alone.”

  I think we can afford to leave these little critters alone.

• [morleyl]

  This is great, I need to read some more on this..

• [Stefan Jones]

  Thank goodness. I’ve been waiting for this for years.

  I can finally try out my great aunt’s recipe for polenta-stuff pygmy tarsier.

• [jackgreg]

  Nothing new, there was a feature-length documentary released about this creature back in ’84, hosted by Hoyt Axton. AND a follow-up documentary about the Tarsier invasion of New Zealand in ’92. I think that one was called “Dead-Alive”.
  Still, chilling stuff. No doubt only seconds later the entire camera crew had their throats ripped out-

• [nehpetsE]

  Don’t Tarsier ME, Bro!

• [Daemon]

  “about the size of a small mouse”… judging from the footage, these have never seen a mouse.

• [markfrei]

  You can have you unicorn chasers – I prefer Pygmy Tarsier chasers…

  awwwww….

• [EnglishNerd]

  jackgreg

  I think you must be thinking of one of the other Tarsiers. The A&M article states that this is the first time they’ve been seen alive in 85 years.

  And I’m with markfrei – they’re adorable!

• [cornballer]

  I thought it said, “about the size of a small house.” I almost passed out in excitement waiting for the video to start.
  damn.

• [Talia]

  tiny tarsiers?? oh my!

• [absimiliard]

  Mmmmmmmm, pygmy tarsiers . . . . .

  I bet they’re a lot like dormice, and thus should be treated like them. The Romans gave us a couple suggestions for how to serve dormice.

  Baked dormice from one source: “Stuff the dormice with minced pork or the meat of other dormice chopped up with herbs, pepper and pine nuts. Sew up the dormice and cook in a small oven.”

  Petronius talks about them . . . ” dipped in honey and rolled in poppy seed.”

  So I’m thinking all I really need, for my life to be complete, is a quick trip to Indonesia with some poppy seeds and honey, and maybe some pinenuts in case I feel like baking them.

  Oh, and a fool-proof escape plan afte the world figures out that I’ve eaten the last pygmy tarsiers on our planet.

  -abs thinks it’s good to have dreams, though he’ll admit that his dream of eating a species into extinction is neither practical nor a particularly good idea . .. . . but damn baked pygmy tarsier sounds tasty.. . .. .

• [Anonymous]

  This ain’t no Furby, it’s the prelude to an alien invasion ! Just look at that thing, it’s an ALIEN !

• [jackgreg]

  englishnerd,
  Sure don’t believe me. Just wait until one of them falls in some water, then we’ll see who knows what…

• [holtt]

  I have to say I read the headline as being something about “Pygmy Tasers” figuring it was yet another “abusive authority figures” story.

• [Anonymous]

  Therefore Bigfoot is real. THE END.