It turns out toddlers aren't the only ones who won't take their medicine.
Lemurs at the Duke Lemur Center have become notorious for refusing to take theirs. And according to Primate Technician Erin Nemecek, the only thing harder than forcing medicine down a child's throat is force-feeding a lemur.
"While some of the animals take medicine well, many do not," she said. "It can be very stressful for both the keeper and the animal, and we can get hurt in the process."
This challenge inspired Nemecek to come up with the idea of running taste preference experiments, in which cups of flavoring are placed into lemurs' cages.
Certain flavors provoke the lemurs to bury their faces in cups, finishing the flavor within seconds. Other solutions are so unappealing to the animals that the medicines go untouched. Among the wild flavor choices: groovy grape, watermelon passion, mom's banana bread, peanut butter and gooey molasses. Some lemurs prefer the saltier flavors whereas other prefer sweet flavors, Nemecek said.
This study is only one of many being conducted at the Lemur Center, which was established in 1966 and houses 233 lemurs from 15 species. Lemurs are prosimians found only on the island of Madagascar.
Other studies include those of numerical cognition, reproductive ecology and inner ear morphology, Schmitt said. In addition to being a nexus for experiments, the Lemur Center is home to a world-class fossil collection and the famous lemur Zoboomafoo, who appeared on a PBS show of the same name for several years.
"The Lemur Center is a unique and invaluable facility," said Tracy Kivell, a visiting assistant professor of evolutionary anthropology. "It houses some of the most endangered primates in the world and offers opportunities to study questions we can't address in their natural environment in Madagascar."
Nemecek and other lemur researchers are excited that the experiments are yielding results to help keep the species alive. They added that they look forward to the day when they can medicate the lemurs without a fuss.
"What I hope is that having the test results makes it easier for us to take care of them," Nemecek said. "Being able to identify their preferences makes it easier on them and easier on us."
Another recent study involves the investigation of aye-aye movements.
These odd-looking primates are known for their specialized hands, made up of long, slender digits used for probing for grubs beneath bark.
But researchers wondered how these lemurs were able to move around on their slim fingers.
"These crazy, delicate, long fingers of theirs create problems in terms of weight bearing and support," said Daniel Schmitt, chair of the evolutionary anthropology department.
Researchers participating in the study are trying to get a grasp on how aye-ayes manage this paradox by examining the forces they place on their hands.
To do this, the researchers have created a ramp with an embedded pressure platform, which records the stress the lemurs put on their fingers when they move down it.
But recording this data is not easy, researchers said.
"Aye-ayes are nocturnal, so we must conduct all our research and filming in the dark, using only a red light," explained Kivell, who is conducting the study.
But Kivell and her colleagues' hard work has paid off thus far. They have discovered that aye-ayes curl their fingers up off the platform as they walk head-first down the ramp.
By using this posture, they avoid putting any stress on their digits, and all the load is put on their palms instead, Kivell said.
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