And you are all awesome, really, but today's awesome monkey photo comes courtesy of me, because I saw this Philippine Tarsier (Tarsius syrichta) and nearly plotzed from it. It's like anime come to life! This little prosimian is believed to be the smallest primate in existence; the nocturnal insectivore was once believed to eat charcoal, but actually eats the bugs escaping burning wood.
And because it cannot be overstated, check this thing out again! Does it not look like it's escaped from Super Jumdan Drive IV: The Legend of Fairycross?
Like so many other awesome primates, these guys are endangered. As this site explains: "Although it is a protected species, and the practice of catching them and then selling them as stuffed tarsiers to tourists has stopped, the species is still threatened by the destruction of his natural forest habitat. Many years of both legal and illegal logging and slash-and-burn agriculture have greatly reduced these forests, and reduced the tarsier population to a dangerously small size. If no action is taken now, the Philippine tarsier can soon be added to the list of extinct species."
If you're inspired to take action to make sure we don't live in a world where anime-looking prosimians are wiped out, The Philippine Tarsier Foundation asks that you get in touch with them. For U.S. citizens, your best bet for doing that is to contact:
Philippine Consulate general
3660 Wilshire Boulevard 900, Suite 825
Los Angeles, CA 90010
USA
Tel. (1-213) 487-4527
Fax: (1-213) 386-4063
Another thing you can do is to donate to the Haribon Foundation, which is focused on preserving Philippine biodiversity -- and they take online donations.
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