THE PROJECT
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Phylogenetic tree © Johan Karlsson
Dwarf galagos (Galagoides spp.) are a group of small nocturnal primates that live in sub-Saharan Africa.  As with many nocturnal animals, dwarf galagos have a cryptic morphology that confounds visual species identification. However, all species present a unique vocal repertoire. Particularly useful for identifying species is the so called advertising call. Displayed by dwarf galagos mainly as a means to facilitate contact, gathering and display between each other, advertising calls are often the first call you will hear at dusk.

Although very useful to identify species with, calls have a limited capacity to reveal the evolutionary relationship between species. Since this project’s main aim is just that, we are pursuing a way proven quite successful in answering questions of kinship and species status - analyzing and comparing DNA from each species, i.e. compose a molecularly based phylogeny.

We are conducting our fieldwork at specific localities in the Biodiversity Hotspots of East Africa, especially in Tanzania – the melting pot of dwarf galago diversity. Our projected start of fieldwork is August-September 2012 and we hope to complete the genetic analysis by the summer of 2013.
Zanzibar galago (Galagoides zanzibaricus) hand © Johan Karlsson
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