News 31 Oct, 2025

On World Lemur Day: Reflecting on progress and the path ahead for SOS Lemurs

Today, on World Lemur Day, we celebrate one of Earth’s most extraordinary lineages, the lemurs of Madagascar, and the dedicated conservationists working to ensure their survival. These primates, endemic to Madagascar, are among the world’s most threatened groups of mammals. According to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™, 98 percent of lemur species face extinction risk, with more than 30 percent Critically Endangered.

Photo: ©The Phoenix Conservancy

Through the SOS Lemurs initiative under IUCN’s Save Our Species (SOS) programme, conservation partners across Madagascar are addressing these threats head-on: restoring habitats, supporting local livelihoods, and ensuring that lemur conservation goes hand-in-hand with community well-being.

Madagascar’s living heritage

Madagascar’s lemurs represent a remarkable evolutionary story: over 100 species, ranging from the tiny mouse lemur to the dancing sifaka, each playing a crucial ecological role. They disperse seeds, regenerate forests and sustain the balance of ecosystems that millions of people rely upon for food, water and livelihoods.

But these same forests are disappearing fast. Deforestation, unsustainable resource use and illegal hunting continue to erode the last strongholds of lemurs. The loss of these species would not only mean the disappearance of Madagascar’s natural heritage but also profound consequences for ecosystem health and human resilience.

SOS Lemurs: From Phase I to a stronger Phase II

Launched in 2017, SOS Lemurs remains the only global initiative dedicated exclusively to the conservation of lemurs and their habitats. Over its first phase (2017 – 2023), it supported 49 projects that helped protect 63 lemur species, strengthen local conservation organisations, and advance sustainable livelihoods in key biodiversity areas across Madagascar.

In 2023, the initiative entered its second phase, expanding both its scope and ambition. Eleven new projects are now underway under SOS Lemurs Phase II (2023 – 2029), marking a renewed commitment to scale up impact and align with the goals of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

This new phase places greater emphasis on:

Long-term sustainability, ensuring that conservation efforts endure beyond project cycles.
Capacity strengthening, by investing in peer learning among grantees, enhancing beneficiaries’ local skills, and drawing on the support of experts.
Partnerships and policy, linking local action with national and global priorities for biodiversity and climate resilience.

11 new projects: local leadership, global impact

The 11 new Large Grants projects launched in 2025 as part of SOS Lemurs Phase II reflect the diversity of both species and strategies needed to secure Madagascar’s future. Together, they tackle threats ranging from habitat degradation to illegal trade, while empowering Malagasy communities to lead conservation on their own terms.

Voices of the Forest: Community Conservation of Lemurs in Makira: Supporting forest-edge communities to protect lemurs and restore degraded forests in Makira Natural Park (implemented by Wildlife Conservation Society)
Ankarafantsika National Park: Saving Endangered Lemurs through Forest Restoration and Fire Management: Strengthening fire control and forest governance for key lemur habitats (implemented by Planet Madagascar Association)
Empowering Local Governance for the Alaotran Gentle Lemur and Wetland Resilience: Safeguarding the Critically Endangered Hapalemur alaotrensis and improving community co-management in the Alaotra wetlands (implemented by Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust)
Restoring Forest Corridors in Betampona Reserve: Promoting alternative livelihoods to reduce wild meat hunting and unsustainable wood extraction (implemented by Madagascar Fauna and Flora Group)
Securing the Future of Lemurs and Forests in Andriantantely: Enhancing long-term habitat protection and ecological connectivity for threatened lemur populations (implemented by The Aspinall Foundation)
Restoring Ivohiboro’s Lost Forest: Expanding restoration and livelihood diversification to recover degraded forest landscapes in southern Madagascar (implemented by Phoenix Conservancy and Malagasy Institute for the Conservation of Tropical Ecosystems)
Safeguarding the Gray-headed Brown Lemur in Efatsy-Manombo Classified Forest: Conserving a key lemur population through habitat rehabilitation and community awareness (implemented by Groupe d’étude et de recherche sur les primates)
Keeping Lemurs Wild in Atsimo-Andrefana: Addressing the illegal pet trade of Lemur catta and Propithecus verreauxi through local patrols, forest restoration, and education (implemented by Arboretum d’Antsokay)
Community-led Protection in Bemanevika and Mahimborondro: Supporting local groups to manage protected areas and monitor lemur populations (implemented by The Peregrine Fund)
Protecting Lemurs through Sustainable Livelihoods and Habitat Restoration in Northern Madagascar: Integrating restoration, alternative incomes, and protection for Critically Endangered sifakas and aye-ayes (implemented by Fanamby)
Ensuring the Long-Term Protection of the Largest Wild Population of Greater Bamboo Lemurs: Conserving the last stronghold of Prolemur simus through community-based conservation and habitat management (implemented by Association française pour la sauvegarde du grand Hapalemur)

Together, these projects cover the full spectrum of conservation challenges, from habitat degradation and fire management to community enterprise development and environmental education, reflecting an integrated, landscape-based approach to protecting lemurs and people alike.

The path ahead

The SOS Lemurs initiative is helping to chart that path of survival, one that balances ecological integrity, social equity and scientific excellence.

Looking ahead, our priorities are clear:

To deepen partnerships with Malagasy organisations and community groups leading on the ground.
To monitor and share results so lessons and successes can inform national and regional policy.
To restore connectivity across fragmented forest landscapes, ensuring lemurs can move, feed and adapt.
To mobilise lasting support from governments, donors and the public for Madagascar’s unparalleled biodiversity.

In the coming year, new projects will also join the SOS Lemurs portfolio, further expanding our collective impact. Several additional initiatives, supported through Medium Grants, will begin implementation in early 2026, bringing fresh opportunities to strengthen community engagement, habitat restoration and species recovery across Madagascar.

A shared responsibility

World Lemur Day is a reminder of our shared responsibility to protect Madagascar’s extraordinary biodiversity. Lemurs embody both the fragility and resilience of nature, and their future depends on collective action.

As SOS Lemurs continues its implementation, the message is one of optimism and determination: with collaboration, science, and local leadership, Madagascar’s forests can remain alive with the calls of lemurs for generations to come.