Davis Pictures

One thing about the islands is that many people take pets from the surrounding wildlife—sparrows, pigeons, herons, centipedes (de-fanged), beetles, lemurs all make their way into the hands of groups of children who parade them around the streets until most die or escape.  Last week some kids had a lemur—a very young lemur, and someone decided to bring it to our house (a la Tweety the Sparrow.)  This lemur is absolutely tiny—110 grams, that’s less than 4 ounces!  We didn’t know if it would survive its first night, but it has proved to be a plucky fellow, and so far we are on day 8.  We assume he was not yet weaned, and he has been drinking formula from a syringe and lapping up smashed fruit from an eggcup.  Luckily, we live in the right place, and it is easy to give him some of the leftover banana, mango, lime, passion fruit, papaya, or jackfruit.  He seems to especially like Jen’s banana bread, and accidentally he got a taste for chocolate and was immediately hooked.

The girls named him Fig, which I’m sure must be short for Figaro (he’s deserving of a longer name), and he spends every waking (and sleeping minute with them.  He’s a pretty chilled guy—happy to be carried wrapped up in a t-shirt or clinging to Tovah or Lami’s hair.  Once he’s firmly entwined his tiny fingers in their hair he sleeps peacefully (or watches the world) and they can do school or read etc.  As long as they don’t eat a piece of banana cake, that’s where he is.  This has it’s hygienic challenges, so Jen rigs up a little diaper for it during the day, and then at night he gets wrapped up in a t-shirt and sleeps in a box next to the girls.

The rest is pictures.