Grant's galago
Galagoides granti
Key identification features
A rat sized primate with large ears and large eyes and a elongated upturned nose. The fur is soft brown coloured with yellowish tints. The base of the tail is yellowish brown and the tip is very dark coloured. It has a greyish dark brown head with dark eye patches and a white stripe on the nose between the eyes. They are nocturnal and more often heard then seen. The loud calls of bushbabies are a better guide for separating the various species then their appearance. The Grant’s galago has an incremental call like the Diani lesser galago but maintains a relatively consistent loudness, and has more units per phrase then the Diani lesser galago. HB 14-19 cm. Wt 139-178 kg.
Habitat and social behaviour
It occurs in forest mosaics, riverine strips and coastal forests. Nocturnal social animal that lives in small family groups but forages singly.
Similar species
The different species of dwarf galagos look very similar and the most reliable way to distinguish between species in the field is by the loud advertising calls . The Zanzibar galago has a call with rolling trill units that after a few units becomes higher pitched and louder before reaching a mild crescendo and then trailing off. The diani lesser galago has a incremental call. It often begins with high pitched rapidly uttered chirrups followed by units arranged in phrases in a high loud tone, which gets softer and gets an increasing number of units per phrase during the call. The Rondo galago has a sustained vibrating call that rises in volume and tails of quite suddenly after 10 seconds. The mountain galago’s has a double unit call: It is comprised of two soft units. The first unit is made at a higher pitch than the second, and uttered in a series up to six times at a regular tempo to form a phrase. Sometimes there is a single unit at the beginning and at the end of the call.
Distribution Map
See also
Rondo galago · Zanzibar galago · Diani lesser galago · Mountain galago