Blog 3: Bengal Slow Loris


Intro

The Bengal slow loris is a solitary animal, meaning that it does not interact very often with members of its own species. They are often only found together when there is a mother and baby pair or during the mating season. Though rarely seen, there are also instances where Bengal slow lorises will be found sleeping together in the same tree hollow. Due to their solitary nature both male and female slow lorises are incredibly territorial and aggressive towards members of their own sex. Males are especially aggressive towards one another due to the incredibly high level of male-on-male competition that occurs in these solitary species of primates. This aggression is common among species of 

Breeding and Social Structure

 Bengal slow loris is what is call promiscuous meaning that during the time a female is ready to mate with males she will have multiple male partners. The reason that the females do this is because they do not want the males to know who the father of their baby is. The reason for this is to cause something called paternity confusion, meaning that because the males may or may not be the father they will not cause harm to the baby in the chance that the baby shares that males genes. Infanticide is common among many animal species primates included, and while a male Bengal slow loris may not kill offspring that is not theirs having the paternity confusion adds another layer of protection to the baby.

Baby and Mother Bengal Slow Loris by Helena Snyder


 When ready to breed the female will call out to nearby males with whistle like calls. There is no set time or season when a female Bengal slow loris can get pregnant this makes them non-seasonal breeders what happens is the female goes into estrus or the period where a female animal is receptive to mating and able to get pregnant whenever her body decides to be ready. The time in which one female is in estrus is not the same time other females will be in estrus meaning there is no mating season.

 This breeding behavior correlates with how the Bengal slow lorises set up their territory. A male Bengal slow loris will have a very large territory and inside that large territory there will be multiple smaller territories controlled by females. It is important to note that the female territories do not overlap. This non seasonal breeding makes sense for the way the territory is established. Due to the wide space between females the male can only be with one female at a time, meaning if all females are in estrus at the same time only one female will be able to get pregnant. Only one female getting pregnant would not be beneficial and would lead to a different social structure. 

Example of loris territory by Leah Dorum

Parenting

 When a female does get pregnant, she will carry the infant for about six months before giving birth. A vast majority of the time only one infant will be born, but on occasion Bengal slow lorises will give birth to twins. A mother Bengal slow loris will have very close social ties with her infant and this is the only social relationship they will have. The mother will spend lots of time grooming and playing with her infant. The mother and infant will communicate by scent and verbal calling these calls often sound like clicking. During the night when it is time for the females to forage the baby will be placed on a safe branch where it will sit still using its strong grip strength to cling almost perfectly still making it difficult to predators to see them. When the baby reaches sexual maturity, it will have to leave its mother's territory and form a territory of its own where it can begin breeding and having its own offspring.

Works Cited

Nekaris. (2014). Extreme primates: Ecology and evolution of Asian lorises. Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.libproxy.nau.edu/doi/full/10.1002%2Fevan.21425

Oliver, K. (2019). Slow loris density in a fragmented, disturbed dry forest, north-east Thailand. Retrieved from https://onlinelibrary-wiley-com.libproxy.nau.edu/doi/full/10.1002/ajp.22957

Slow Loris. (2009). Retrieved from https://primate.wisc.edu/primate-info-net/pin-factsheets/pin-factsheet-slow-loris/#evolution-ecology

Strier, K. B. (2021). Primate behavioral ecology. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group.

Weinstein, S. (2025). Bengal slow loris, Nycticebus bengalensis - new england primate conservancy. Retrieved from https://neprimateconservancy.org/bengal-slow-loris/ 

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