Madagascans know the Indri as the babakoto, which means man of the forest or little father. They produce a loud territorial call in the morning, which can travel for over 1km. They are the largest of the lemurs and are easily identifiable by their stumpy tail.

Subspecies
None.

Life span
Unknown.

Statistics
Head and body length: 60cm, Tail length: 5cm, Weight: Female: 7.1kg, Male: 5.8kg.

Physical description
Indris have a long, dense silky coat with varying amounts of black and white. They have a black hairless face, and a throat sac to create resonance.

Distribution
They inhabit eastern Madagascar.

Habitat
Indris prefer humid mountain forest.

Diet
Young leaves make up most of their diet, but they also feed on fruit, unripe seeds and buds.

Behaviour
They typically live in pairs, and females are dominant over males. Indris are diurnal and arboreal, and females feed in the higher levels of the trees, where there is more food (displacing the males).

Reproduction
After a gestation period of 120-150 days, females give birth to one infant between May and June. For the first 3-4 weeks, the infant cling to the mother's stomach, but for the following 28 weeks, it clings to her back.

Conservation status
Indris are in the Endangered category of the 2000 IUCN Red List.