Madagascar's mysterious aye-aye warms up its extra-long finger when searching for dinner, scientists have found.
The lemur, the world's largest nocturnal primate, taps its specialised middle finger on tree trunks to find nutritious beetle larvae.
Studying thermal images, researchers found that the digit was colder than the others but warmed by up to 6C during foraging. Scientists suggest that the aye-aye saves energy by keeping the digit
cool. The findings are published in the International Journal of Primatology.
The team from Dartmouth University in New Hampshire, US, wanted to investigate the surface temperature of sensitive structures. The aye-aye's unusual middle finger has already been found to be super-sensitive to vibrations, so provided the perfect subject for their study.
"It was striking to see how much cooler the third digit was while not in use and how quickly it warmed to [match] the other digits when engaged in an active foraging task," said graduate student Gillian Moritz, who carried out the study under the guidance of her supervisor, Dr Nathaniel Dominy.
Continued: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/16577537
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