The Lemurian Odyssey: A Speculative Evolution of North America in the Absence of Humans

### Speculative Evolution Scenario: Lemurs, Bushbabies, and Lorises Thrive in Post-Human North America **Day 1 After People:** - Zoos and safari parks across North America become eerily silent as human activity ceases abruptly. - Lemurs, bushbabies, and lorises contained within these facilities either escape or are inadvertently freed due to power failures and general decay of the man-made structures. **1 Week After People:** - Escaped primates begin seeking food and shelter in their immediate vicinities. - Urban areas initially form temporary refuges, offering scattered sources of food and shelter. **1 Month After People:** - Animals start moving towards suburban and then more rural areas, following natural instincts to find more suitable, forested habitats. - Bushbabies and lorises, being nocturnal, adapt quickly to foraging in abandoned gardens and woods. **1 Year After People:** - Surviving populations of lemurs, galagos, and lorises establish themselves in fragmented forests, occupying the less human-impacted regions of North America. - Their adaptive behaviors like varied diet flexibility and climbing adeptness favor their survival. **10 Years After People:** - With human infrastructures collapsing, forests begin reclaiming urban areas, expanding suitable habitats. - Lemurs diversify into niche roles similar to New World monkeys, with ring-tailed lemurs becoming common in drier, open forests, while ruffed lemurs thrive in denser, more mature woodlands. - Bushbabies and lorises concentrate in more temperate and tropical zones, exploiting niches that larger predators avoid. **50 Years After People:** - Ecosystem stabilizes with a significant reduction in human impediments; new, balanced predator-prey dynamics emerge. - Lemurs, particularly sifakas and agile Eulemur species, evolve greater locomotion efficiency tailored to North American forest structures. - Small lorises adapt to colder northern climates by developing thicker coats, while the more tropical-adapted ones thrive in warmer regions. **100 Years After People:** - Lemur populations exhibit noticeable speciation—Coquerel's sifakas adapt to the temperate deciduous forests of the Appalachian region, shifting diets toward more seasonal fruits and leaves. - Dwarf lemurs and mouse lemurs, meanwhile, remain widespread, favoring ephemeral habitats susceptible to rapid changes. - Galagos adapt to the open woodlands of the Midwest, with larger eyes and greater jumping prowess for navigating fragmented forest patches. **1,000 Years After People:** - Fully diversified populations are now well-established, with specific species filling various ecological niches. - Red ruffed lemurs evolve a more robust build, aiding their survival in the thickly forested regions of the Pacific Northwest. - Galagos and lorises show morphological adaptions like slight increases in size or decreased finger lengths to manage colder and more temperate environments. - Aye-ayes become more common in the reclaimed urban woodlands, utilizing their unique foraging techniques on invasive insect species. **10,000 Years After People:** - Evolutionary pressure enhances specific adaptations like longer limbs in sifakas for better arboreal navigation, contrast-rich fur patterns in ruffed lemurs for camouflage, and better olfactory senses in nocturnal species for enhancing foraging efficiency. - Regions like the Florida Everglades see an influx of bamboo lemurs adapting to wetland forests, showing slight webbing in feet. - Bushbabies evolve slight variations in size and coat thickness in relation to the specific micro-climates they inhabit, from the Southwestern deserts to the boreal forests. **100,000 Years After People:** - Lemur species have completely adapted to North American habitats, showing parallel evolution characteristics with New and Old World monkeys. - Bushbabies and lorises, now key nocturnal predators, diversify subtly yet significantly—smaller species adapt to forest floor living while larger ones dominate the understory. **1 Million Years After People:** - Evolution has created a plethora of lemur species that have truly made North America their own. - Giant lemurs adapted to bipedal ground foraging inhabit areas devoid of large predators, while arboreal species reach swiftness and dexterity rivaling that of their South American capuchin counterparts. - Bushbaby and loris populations continue to thrive, filling nocturnal niches perfectly, demonstrating minor but significant morphological adaptations such as specialized limb structures and various coat adaptations. In this speculative scenario, through progressive adaptation, diversification, and natural selective pressures, lemurs, bushbabies, and lorises exhibit their inherent evolutionary potential, embodying a wide array of niches in a post-human North America.

Speculative Evolution of Lemurs, Galagos and Lorises in North America 1 Day After People: Zoos and Safari Parks are left desolate. The former residents of Duke Lemur Center also wistfully roam the empty compounds. Primitive survival instincts kick in for the abandoned primates, leading them to forage for food within the confines of their enclosures. 3 Months After People: With the degradation and breakdown of their artificial enclosures, the lemurs, galagos, and lorises venture further and wider within the formerly populated areas, scavenging on food remnants and plant life. 2 Years After People: Fruits and edible plants start to grow around former human habitats leading to abundant food for our subjects. Small colonies start to form, leading to stronger communities and healthy breeding practices. 50 Years After People: Initial barriers of adaptation overcome, North America sees unprecedented growth of these previously alienate species, due to the lack of competition and predation. Genetic variation and sympatric speciation leading to many subspecies of each primate. 500 Years After People: Through divergent evolution, the various species have become distinct from their ancestral forms, shaped by North America's varied climates and environments. Several lemur species have grown larger to better adapt to different environments, with some taking to the trees like New World monkeys, while others wandering the forest floors, akin to baboons in Africa. 10,000 Years After People: At this stage, evolution has drastically reshaped these founding primate populations. New subspecies continue to evolve, filling various ecological niches. The North American Bamboo lemur, for example, has long, narrow fingers specifically evolved to extract and eat bamboo shoots, akin to the South American woolly monkeys. 50,000 Years After People: Galagos remain quite similar to their ancestors, with minuscule morphological changes for better mobility and camouflage. Slender lorises, on the other hand, develop pointed teeth for defense and for gaining access to hidden grubs and insects, as a way to find niche food sources. 100,000 Years After People: Evolutionary branches have now diversified massively leading to an ecosystem wherein many species coexist, often filling similar niches to New World monkeys, Old-World monkeys, and even apes. 1 Million Years After People: The primates have continued to adapt and evolve to the ever-changing climates and surroundings of North America. Gallantly they stride on, a true testament to the power of evolution with surviving species that are distinct but genetically linked to their glorious ancestors.