Duke Lemur Center

Founded in 1966, the Duke Lemur Center (DLC) is an internationally acclaimed non-invasive research facility housing over 200 lemurs across 14 species – the most diverse population of lemurs on Earth, outside their native Madagascar.

Because all of its research is non-invasive, the DLC is open to the public and educates more than 35,000 visitors annually. Its highly successful conservation breeding program seeks to preserve vanishing species such as the aye-aye, sifaka, and blue-eyed black lemur, while its Madagascar Conservation Programs study and protect lemurs – the most endangered mammals on Earth – in their native habitat. The Division of Fossil Primates examines primate extinction and evolution over time and houses over 35,000 fossils, including extinct giant lemurs and one of the world’s largest and most important collections of early anthropoid primates.