Family Of The Week: Dactylonychidae
This is a group of specialized lemurs. They are closely related to such species as Testudicodas in the family Promonsamiidae. Unlike Testudicodas , these lemurs do not cling to branches via their tails. But they almost completely lack fleshy fingers that other pentadactyls possess. Instead, the fingers all stiffen at the first finger joint, and is fused into a long, curved claw-like appendage. These claws are long, powerful and sharp, and serve as both clinging devices for the trees and branches, as well as weapons of self defense. They did, however, sacrifice the ability to grasp small branches the same way other pentadactyls (and historically primates) can. These lemurs also share a trait with modern polar bears. They have fur that is hollow, and each strand is tube-shaped. This allows glowing bacteria to colonize these hollows. Specifically, bacteria that glows in the dark. So, these lemurs have the ability to glow, which is used to confuse predators. The glowing action occurs...