Food partitioning among Malagasy primates

 Food partitioning among lemurs was studied in relation to food patch size and plant chemistry in the eastern rainforest and a western deciduous forest of Madagascar. Patch size (i.e. crown diameter of food trees) is significantly correlated with group body weight of different lemur species. But intraspecific variability is high and prevents effective species separation. Chemical analyses of more than 400 plant parts eaten by seven different lemur species revealed major differences in their food choice with respect to protein concentrations, condensed tannins and alkaloids. Among the leaf eating lemurs discriminant analysis segregates three groups two species based on chemical characteristics of their food. Whereas differences in food chemistry are pronounced between groups they are lacking between the two species within each group. The two species of each group avoid interference competition by different activity rhythms. Actual competition for slowly renewable resources such as leaves and fruit, however, can not be reduced by different activities. Here interspecific differences in gross categories of food, food species composition and different habitat utilization due to other constraints may contribute to the possible coexistence of species. Thus interspecific differences in food selection in relation to primary and secondary plant chemicals is an integrated part of the mechanisms allowing several primate species to coexist in sympatry. 

The main issue is that human does not awake about how critical is the situation. Because globalization teached for a long time a scheme of "a civilized society" focusing ofocusing on individual performance to have a place inside a consumer society.

But always, there is hope. All people should act together facing the loss of biodiversity. An important step is to encompass biodiversity and civilization aspects of each bioarea. Collecting materials for museum has great input important for research and biodiversity conservation. But "real histories" of each people of each patches of the Earth can tell much what is the role even of a single species. "There is always hope." as said Dr. Jane Goodall
https://www.facebook.com/jane.goodall.intezet/videos/2279463005606523/