AnAge entry for Microcebus murinus

Classification (HAGRID: 02775)

Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia
    Phylum: Chordata
        Class: Mammalia (Taxon entry)
            Order: Primates (Taxon entry)
                Family: Cheirogaleidae
                    Genus: Microcebus
Species
Microcebus murinus
Common name
Gray mouse lemur
Synonyms
Chirogaleus gliroides, Galago madagascarensis, Prosimia minima, Cheirogaleus minor, Myscebus palmarum, Lemur prehensilis, Lemur pusillus

Lifespan, ageing, and relevant traits

Maximum longevity
18.2 years (captivity)
Source
ref. 671
Sample size
Medium
Data quality
Acceptable
Observations

Grey mouse lemurs appear to be among the shortest lived primates [0463]. One captive specimen lived for 18.2 years [0671]. In the wild these animals experience very high levels of extrinsic mortality. Wild grey mouse lemurs have shorter lifespans, however the oldest animals display no evidence of functional senescence. In contrast, captive grey mouse lemurs show senescence in their ability to regain lost body mass and a reverse sex bias in lifespan (favouring males) [1189]. Captive grey mouse lemurs are generally weaker and show earlier decline in physical strength than wild animals. Wild female grey mouse lemurs are generally stronger than their male counterparts [1190].

Moderate caloric restriction was found to extend the lifespan of males by 50%, reduce age-related diseases, preserve the loss of white matter in several brain regions and accelerate the loss of grey matter in older animals. However, this atrophy by loss of grey matter was not associated with changes in cognitive performances [1361].

Life history traits (averages)

Female sexual maturity
243 days
Male sexual maturity
243 days
Gestation
61 days
Weaning
Litter size
2 (viviparous)
Litters per year
1
Inter-litter interval
73 days
Weight at birth
6 g
Weight at weaning
Adult weight
64.8 g
Postnatal growth rate
0.0362 days-1 (from Gompertz function)
Maximum longevity residual
197%

Metabolism

No information on metabolism is available.

References

External Resources

Integrated Taxonomic Information System
ITIS 572861
Animal Diversity Web
ADW account
Encyclopaedia of Life
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NCBI Taxonomy
Taxonomy ID 30608
Entrez
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Ageing Literature
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Internet
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