potto
{{short description|Arboreal primate of west-central Africa}}
{{other uses}}
{{distinguish|Potoo|Pottu}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Potto{{MSW3 Groves|page=123}}
| image = PottoCincyZoo.jpg
| display_parents = 2
| taxon = Perodicticus
| type_species = Lemur potto
| type_species_authority = Müller, 1766
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = Perodicticus edwardsi
| authority = Bennett, 1831
| range_map = Perodicticus potto distribution.svg
| range_map_caption = Geographic range of all three species
}}
The pottos are three species of strepsirrhine primate in the genus Perodicticus of the family Lorisidae. In some English-speaking parts of Africa, they are called "softly-softlys".{{Cite web | title = Potto (primate) | year = 2013 | publisher = Encyclopædia Britannica | url = http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/472935/potto | access-date = 2013-03-15}}
Etymology
The common name "potto" may be from Wolof {{lang|wo|pata}} (a tailless monkey).{{Merriam-Webster|potto}}
The generic name Perodicticus is composed of Greek {{wikt-lang|grc|πηρός}} ({{transliteration|grc|pērós}}, ‘maimed’) and {{wikt-lang|grc|δεικτικός}} ({{transliteration|grc|deiktikós}}, "able to show/indicate", cf. {{wikt-lang|el|δείκτης}}, {{transliteration|el|deíktēs}}, ‘index finger’). It refers to the stubby index finger that seems mutilated.{{cite book|last=Whitney|first=William Dwight|title=The Century Dictionary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JXNPAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA4409|year=1890|publisher=Century Co.|page=4409|quote= NL. (Bennett), < Gr. {{lang|grc|πηρός}}, maimed, + {{wikt-lang|grc|δεικτικός}}, serving to point out (with ref. to the index-finger): see {{linktext|deictic}}.}}{{cite book|last=Palmer|first=Theodore Sherman|title=Index Generum Mammalium|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WdnPAAAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA525|year=1904|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|page=525|quote= so called from the rudimentary index finger.}}
Taxonomy
There are three species recognized by the IUCN Red List and American Society of Mammalogists:{{Cite journal | last1 = Butynski | first1 = T. M. | last2 = De Jong | first2 = Y. A. | title = Distribution of the potto Perodicticus potto (Primates: Lorisidae) in eastern Africa, with a description of a new subspecies from Mount Kenya | journal = Journal of East African Natural History | volume = 96 | issue = 2 | pages = 113–147| year = 2007 | doi = 10.2982/0012-8317(2007)96[113:DOTPPP]2.0.CO;2 | s2cid = 86208015 | issn = }}{{Citation|last=Database|first=Mammal Diversity|title=Mammal Diversity Database|date=2021-11-06|doi=10.5281/zenodo.5651212 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/5651212|access-date=2021-11-08}}
{{Species table |no-note=y |genus=Perodicticus |authority-name=Bennett |authority-year=1831 |species-count=three|narrow-percent=75}}
{{Species table/row
|name=Central African potto |binomial=P. edwardsi
|image=File:Perodicticus potto - Royal Museum for Central Africa - DSC06787.JPG |image-size=180px |image-alt=Brown potto
|authority-name=Bouvier |authority-year=1879
|range=Central Africa |range-image= |range-image-size=180px
|size={{convert|30|–|37|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long, plus {{convert|3|–|7|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} tail
|hunting=Gum, insects, snails and fruit
|iucn-status=LC |population=Unknown
|direction={{decrease|Population declining}}
}}
{{Species table/row
|name=East African potto |binomial=P. ibeanus
|image=File:East African Potto.jpg |image-size=180px |image-alt=Brown potto
|authority-name=Thomas |authority-year=1910
|range=East central Africa |range-image= |range-image-size=180px
|subspecies={{Collapsible list |expand=yes |title=Two subspecies |bullets=on
| P. i. ibeanus (Eastern potto)
| P. i. stockleyi (Mount Kenya potto)
}}
|size={{convert|29|–|37|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long, plus {{convert|4|–|10|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} tail
|hunting=Fruit, gum, nectar, and invertebrates, as well as moss, frogs, and eggs
|iucn-status=LC |population=Unknown
|direction={{steady|Population steady}}
}}
{{Species table/row
|name=West African potto |binomial=P. potto
|image=File:PottoCincyZoo.jpg |image-size=180px |image-alt=Brown potto
|authority-name=P. Müller |authority-year=1766 |authority-not-original=yes
|range=Western equatorial Africa |range-image= |range-image-size=180px
|size={{convert|30|–|39|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long, plus {{convert|3|–|10|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} tail
|hunting=Fruit, arthropods, insects, and eggs, as well as small vertebrates
|iucn-status=NT |population=Unknown
|direction={{decrease|Population declining}}
}}
{{Species table/end}}
Formerly, all species were classified under one species, P. potto. However, variation among pottos is significant, prompting speculation that there may be more than one species. A 2015 study confirmed there to be three distinct potto species with deep genetic divergence dating to the Miocene for all three species.{{Cite journal|last1=Pozzi|first1=Luca|last2=Nekaris|first2=K. Anne-Isola|last3=Perkin|first3=Andrew|last4=Bearder|first4=Simon K.|last5=Pimley|first5=Elizabeth R.|last6=Schulze|first6=Helga|last7=Streicher|first7=Ulrike|last8=Nadler|first8=Tilo|last9=Kitchener|first9=Andrew|last10=Zischler|first10=Hans|last11=Zinner|first11=Dietmar|date=2015|title=Remarkable ancient divergences amongst neglected lorisiform primates|journal=Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society|language=en|volume=175|issue=3|pages=661–674|doi=10.1111/zoj.12286|issn=1096-3642|pmc=4744660|pmid=26900177}}
A few closely related species also have "potto" in their names: the two golden potto species (also known as angwantibos) and the false potto. Although it has been suggested that the differences that separate the false potto from the West African potto are a result of an anomalous specimen being used as the holotype which may have been a West African potto.{{cite thesis | last1 = Stump | first1 = D.P. | year = 2005 | url = http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/7980 | publisher = University of Pittsburgh | pages = 199 | title = Taxonomy of the genus Perodicticus | degree = PhD }}
The Central and South American kinkajou (Potos flavus) and olingos (Bassaricyon sp.) are similar in appearance and behavior to African pottos, and were formerly classified with them (hence Potos). Olingos and kinkajous are now known to be members of the raccoon family.{{cite journal |title=Taxonomic revision of the olingos (Bassaricyon), with description of a new species, the Olinguito |last1=Helgen |first1=K. M. |last2=Pinto |first2=M. |last3=Kays |first3=R. |last4=Helgen |first4=L. |last5=Tsuchiya |first5=M. |last6=Quinn |first6=A. |last7=Wilson |first7=D. |last8=Maldonado |first8=J.|journal= ZooKeys|issue= 324|date= 2013-08-15|pages= 1–83|doi= 10.3897/zookeys.324.5827 |pmid=24003317 |pmc=3760134|doi-access=free |bibcode=2013ZooK..324....1H }}{{cite journal| title=Phylogeny of the Procyonidae (Mammalia: Carvnivora): Molecules, morphology and the Great American Interchange|author1=K.-P. Koepfli |author2=M. E. Gompper |author3=E. Eizirik |author4=C.-C. Ho |author5=L. Linden |author6=J. E. Maldonado |author7=R. K. Wayne | journal= Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume=43 | issue=3 | pages=1076–1095| year=2007 |doi= 10.1016/j.ympev.2006.10.003| pmid=17174109|bibcode=2007MolPE..43.1076K }}{{cite journal|last1=Eizirik|first1=E.|last2=Murphy|first2=W. J.|last3=Koepfli|first3=K.-P.|last4=Johnson|first4=W. E.|last5=Dragoo|first5=J. W.|last6=Wayne|first6=R. K.|last7=O’Brien|first7=S. J.|title=Pattern and timing of diversification of the mammalian order Carnivora inferred from multiple nuclear gene sequences|journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution|volume= 56|issue=1|date= 2010-02-04|pages= 49–63|doi= 10.1016/j.ympev.2010.01.033|pmid=20138220|pmc=7034395|bibcode=2010MolPE..56...49E }}
Description
The potto grows to a length of 30 to 39 cm, with a short (3 to 10 cm) tail, and its weight varies from {{Convert|600|to|1600|g|oz}}. The close, woolly fur is grey-brown. The index finger is vestigial, although it has opposable thumbs with which it grasps branches firmly. Like other strepsirrhines the potto has a moist nose, toothcomb, and a toilet claw on the second toe of the hind legs. In the hands and feet, fingers three and four are connected to each other by a slight skin fold, while toes three through five are joined at their bases by a skin web that extends to near the proximal third of the toes.{{cite book | chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5fttVRAHA4MC&pg=PA340 | title = Primate anatomy: an introduction | chapter = Hands and Feet | page = 340 | first = F. | last = Ankel-Simons | publisher = Academic Press | year = 2000 | isbn = 0-12-058670-3}}
The neck has four to six low tubercles or growths that cover its elongated vertebrae which have sharp points and nearly pierce the skin; these are used as defensive weapons. Both males and females have large scent glands under the tail (in females, the swelling created by the glands is known as a pseudo-scrotum), which they use to mark their territories and to reinforce pair bonds. The potto has a distinct odor that some observers have likened to curry.
Distribution and habitat
Pottos inhabit the canopy of rain forests in tropical Africa: from Nigeria, Guinea to Kenya and Uganda into the north of the Democratic Republic of Congo.{{cite iucn |author=Svensson, M., Oates, J.F., Pimley, E. & Gonedelé Bi, S.|title= Perodicticus potto |year= 2020|page= e.T91995408A92248699|access-date=10 July 2020}} They are nocturnal and arboreal, sleeping during the day in the leaves and almost never descending from the trees.{{Cite web | url = http://www.theprimata.com/perodicticus_potto.html | title = Potto (Perodicticus potto) | publisher = The Primata | first = S. | last = Flannery | year = 2007 | access-date = 2013-03-15 | archive-date = 2016-03-03 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160303172024/http://www.theprimata.com/perodicticus_potto.html | url-status = usurped }}
Behaviour and ecology
File:Perodicticus potto - Royal Museum for Central Africa - DSC06787.JPG
Pottos move slowly and carefully, always gripping a branch with at least two limbs. They are also quiet and avoid predators using cryptic movement. The most common call is a high-pitched "tsic", which is used mainly between mother and offspring.{{Cite book | title = The Behavior Guide to African Mammals | url = https://archive.org/details/isbn_0520080858 | url-access = registration | quote = potto. | first = R. D. | last = Estes | author-link = Richard Despard Estes | publisher = University of California Press | year = 1991 | pages = [https://archive.org/details/isbn_0520080858/page/458 458]–464}}
Studies of stomach contents have shown the potto diet consists of about 65% fruit, 21% tree gums and 10% insects. Pottos have also occasionally been known to catch bats and small birds. Their strong jaws enable it to eat fruits and lumps of dried gum that are too tough for other tree-dwellers. The insects they eat tend to have a strong smell and are generally not eaten by other animals.{{Cite web | title = Perodicticus potto | first = K. | last = McCann | editor1 = Dewey, T. | editor2 = Rasmussen, P. | year = 2009 | publisher = Animal Diversity Web | url = http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Perodicticus_potto/ | access-date = 2013-03-15}}
Pottos have large territories which they mark with urine and glandular secretions. Same-sex intruders are vehemently guarded against, and each male's territory generally overlaps with that of two or more females. Females have been known to donate part of their territories to their daughters, but sons leave their mother's territory upon maturity.
As part of their courting rituals, pottos often meet for bouts of mutual grooming. This is frequently performed while they hang upside down from a branch. Grooming consists of licking, combing fur with the grooming claw and teeth, and anointing with the scent glands. Pottos mate face-to-face while hanging upside down from a branch.{{Cite web | title = Perodicticus potto | date = 2010-10-12 | editor = Pimley, E. | publisher = ARKive | access-date = 2013-03-15 | url = http://www.arkive.org/potto/perodicticus-potto/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130126170943/http://www.arkive.org/potto/perodicticus-potto/ | archive-date = 2013-01-26 | url-status = dead }}
After a gestation period of about 193–205 days, the female gives birth, typically to a single young, but twins are known to occur. The young first are clasped to the belly of the mother, but later she carries them on her back. She can also hide her young in the leaves while searching for food. After about six months, they are weaned, and are fully mature after about 18 months.
=Predators and defences=
File:Bosmans potto skeleton.JPG
Pottos have relatively few predators, because large mammalian carnivores cannot climb to the treetops where they live, and the birds of prey in this part of Africa are diurnal. Pottos living near villages face some predation from humans, who hunt them as bushmeat; the West African potto is thought to be threatened due to this.Hunting for Sustainability in Tropical Forests, edited by John Robinson and Elizabeth Bennett (Columbia University Press, 1999){{Cite journal|last1=Oates|first1=John|last2=University)|first2=Magdalena Svensson (Oxford Brookes|last3=University)|first3=Sery Gonedelé Bi (Felix Houphouet Boigny|last4=Pimley|first4=Elizabeth|date=2020-01-20|title=IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Perodicticus potto|url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/en|journal=IUCN Red List of Threatened Species}} They are sometimes preyed upon by African palm civets, although African palm civets are largely frugivorous.
If threatened, the potto will hide its face and neck-butt its opponent, making use of its unusual vertebrae. It can also deliver a powerful bite. Its saliva contains compounds that cause the wound to become inflamed.
The highest recorded life span for a potto in captivity is 26 years.{{Cite web | url = http://www.brown.edu/Research/Primate/lpn24-1.html#potto | title = The Longevity of a Colony of Captive Nocturnal Prosimians (Perodicticus potto) | first1 = U. M. | last1 = Cowgill | first2 = S. J. | last2 = States | first3 = K. J. | last3 = States | publisher = Laboratory Primate Newsletter | year = 1985 | access-date = 2013-03-15}}
=Cognition and social behaviour=
In a study of strepsirrhine cognition conducted in 1964, pottos were seen to explore and manipulate unfamiliar objects, but only when those objects were baited with food. They were found to be more curious than lorises and lesser bushbabies, but less so than lemurs.{{Cite journal
| last1 = Cowgill | first1 = U. M.
| title = Visiting in Perodicticus
| doi = 10.1126/science.146.3648.1183
| journal = Science
| volume = 146
| issue = 3648
| pages = 1183–1184
| year = 1964
| pmid = 17832247
| bibcode = 1964Sci...146.1183C
| s2cid = 6684237
}} Ursula Cowgill, a biologist at Yale University who looked after six captive pottos for several decades, noticed they appeared to form altruistic relationships. The captive pottos were seen to spend time with a sick companion and to save food for an absent one. However, there is no confirmation this behaviour occurs in the wild.
References
Sources
{{refbegin}}
- {{cite book |title=Mammals of Africa |volume=2 |editor-last1=Kingdon |editor-first1=Jonathan |editor-last2=Happold |editor-first2=David |editor-last3=Butynski |editor-first3=Thomas |editor-last4=Hoffmann |editor-first4=Michael |editor-last5=Happold |editor-first5=Meredith |editor-last6=Kalina |editor-first6=Jan |date=2013 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-4081-8996-2 |ref=CITEREF_MammalAfrica}}
{{refend}}
External links
- {{Wikispecies-inline|Perodicticus}}
- {{Wikispecies-inline|Perodicticus potto}}
- {{Commons category-inline|Perodicticus potto}}
{{Lorisidae nav}}
{{Strepsirrhini|L.}}{{Taxonbar|from=Q19816393}}