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Verreaux's Sifaka (Propithecus verreauxi) wildlife photograph

Field guide · rare

Verreaux's Sifaka

Madagascar's dancing lemur — white fur, vertical leaps, and sideways hops across the sand.

Endangered

Propithecus verreauxi

Overview

Verreaux's sifakas are large, mostly white lemurs of Madagascar's dry and spiny forests. In the trees they spring between trunks; on open ground they hop sideways on their hind legs in the famous 'dance'.

For Madagascar collectors, a sifaka mid-leap is a signature island card — elegant, athletic, and uniquely Malagasy.

Habitat

  • Dry deciduous forest
  • Spiny thicket
  • Gallery woodland

Dry deciduous forest, gallery woodland, and spiny thicket of southern and southwestern Madagascar, where tall trees provide leaping routes and leaves for browsing.

Countries found

Field notes

Field scale for the Verreaux's Sifaka: length around 40-48 cm body; tail ~50-60 cm; weight 3-3.5 kg. Typical lifespan: Around 15-20 years in the wild.

When you are scanning habitat, prioritise dry deciduous forest, spiny thicket, and gallery woodland. Those settings are where a clean look and a usable photo are most likely.

Quick ID anchor: Mostly white coat with dark face, crown, and often dark limbs; long bushy tail. Confirm with behaviour and habitat before you log the discovery.

Diet

Browse leaves, buds, flowers, fruit, and bark from dry-forest trees and shrubs.

Shift plant choices with season as foliage availability changes.

Behaviour

Live in small family groups; leap between vertical trunks by day.

Rest and sunbathe in the canopy; sleep in trees at night.

How to identify

Mostly white coat with dark face, crown, and often dark limbs; long bushy tail.

Upright clinging posture and sideways bipedal hop on the ground.

Interesting facts

  1. 01

    They hop sideways on two legs when crossing open ground.

  2. 02

    Powerful hind legs launch vertical leaps of several metres.

  3. 03

    Diet is mostly leaves, fruit, flowers, and bark.

  4. 04

    Family groups defend territories with scent and loud calls.

  5. 05

    Infants cling to the mother's belly, then ride on her back.

  6. 06

    They are diurnal and sunbathe in early morning light.

Conservation status

EN: Endangered

Verreaux's sifakas are Endangered. Slash-and-burn agriculture, charcoal production, and hunting fragment dry forests. Protected reserves in southern Madagascar are critical refuges.

Sources: IUCN Red List

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