Nyticebus pygmaeus Skull measures 2.0 inches. Nyticebus pygmaeus Skull is museum quality polyurethane resin. Known as Pygmy Slow Loris

The Nyticebus pygmaeus or Pygmy slow loris is a species of slow loris found east of the Mekong River in Vietnam, Laos, eastern Cambodia, and China. It occurs in a variety of forest habitats, including tropical dry forests, semi-evergreen, and evergreen forests.

The Nyticebus pygmaeus or Pygmy slow loris is nocturnal and arboreal, crawling along branches using slow movements in search of prey. Unlike other primates, it does not leap.

They live together in small groups usually with one or two offspring. An adult can grow to around 7.5 to 9.1 ins. long and has a very short tail. It weighs about 1.0 lb.

The Nyticebus pygmaeus or Pygmy slow diet consists of fruits, insects, small fauna, tree sap, and floral nectar. The animal has a toxic bite, which it gets by licking a toxic secretion from glands on the inside of its elbows.

The habitat of the Nyticebus pygmaeus or Pygmy slow loris in Vietnam was greatly reduced due to extensive burning, clearing, and defoliating of forests during the Vietnam War.

Extensive hunting for traditional medicines is currently putting severe pressure on Cambodian populations. The pygmy slow loris is seriously threatened by hunting, trade, and habitat destruction.

The Nyticebus pygmaeus or Pygmy slow loris has declined in numbers as a result of extensive habitat degradation throughout its range, including north-eastern Cambodia, the Yunnan Province of China, and Vietnam.

In Yunnan province, nearly all primary evergreen forests have vanished and secondary forests have been heavily degraded.

As of 2003, the forest cover had been reduced to 30% of its original area, with only 10% of the remaining forest consisting of the closed-canopy forests preferred by the pygmy slow loris.

As of 2005, forest cover has been reduced by 42% since the mid-1990s. The use of defoliants, such as Agent Orange, during the Vietnam War and the ongoing clearing of forests in Vietnam have resulted in a considerable loss of habitat.

The Nyticebus pygmaeus or Pygmy slow loris is listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), and in 2020 the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classified it as endangered.

Filter