FOXSYLVANIA

– – Have you ever seen anything look this sad and cute at the same time?–Don’t you just want to take it home with you?–Well, you may not want to, because it’s a venomous primate, a type of slow loris species called Nycticebus kayan newly discovered in Borneo.

Now the slow loris (which sounds like a Dr. Sseus character) is a nocturnal primate found across Southeast Asia that is closely related to a lemur and is characterized by unique fur coloration on its face and body.  The creatures are poorly understood due to their lifestyle of nighttime activity and slow movements.

To access its poison, a slow loris rubs its hands under glands near its armpits, then applies the poison to its teeth.  The resulting bite can put a person or predator into potentially fatal anaphylactic shock.  Despite its toxic defense, the species is threatened due to deforestation and poaching.  Sadly, the cuteness of the species may lead to its undoing, making it a prime candidate on the illegal pet-trade market in Asia.  Due to the toxicity of its bite, captive animals often have their canine and incisor teeth pulled out, which puts them at risk since they then can’t chew properly, ultimately resulting in death…

This entry was posted on December 17, 2012 at 1:31 am and is filed under animal behavior, animals, conservation, endangered species, environmental, furry, species survival. You can subscribe via RSS 2.0 feed to this post's comments.

Tags: new slow loris