A small lemur of Madagascan forests. It forages at night and sleeps in sites such as tree holes by day.
It has large eyes and short limbs. The coat is brownish gray with a paler underside.
A study in western Madagascar compared gray mouse lemurs in primary and secondary dry forest. From 1993 to 1995, researchers trapped at 150 stations in primary forest and 129 in secondary forest, for four nights each year. In a separate 43-day temperature study, the mean daily maximum in primary-forest tree holes was 28.8°C, compared with 32.0°C in secondary forest. Of the animals marked in the previous year, 10–20% were recaptured in primary forest, while none were recaptured in secondary forest.
The secondary forest also had fewer large and fallen trees, which can provide tree holes for shelter. The researchers suggest that warmer, less sheltered sites may make it harder for mouse lemurs to lower body temperature and energy use during the dry season. Because torpid animals may not enter traps, capture rates do not directly measure how many lemurs live in either forest.
IUCN Red List · Least Concern (LC) · Global
Gray Mouse Lemurs tolerate some habitat alteration and occur in protected areas. Habitat retention matters amid forest loss, while Duke maintains breeding guided by genetic diversity.
The global IUCN Red List assessment classifies the gray mouse lemur as Least Concern (LC). In the assessment dated 5 April 2020, its population trend is listed as decreasing.