Habitat destruction remains the primary threat to the brown lemur, largely as a result of the explosive growth in the human population on Madagascar (5). Eastern areas of rainforest are destroyed by slash-and-burn agriculture and by forest cutting for fuel wood and construction, while dryer western forests are cleared by fires started to promote new flushes of pasture for grazing cattle. Hunting and trapping for food or the pet trade may also constitute a threat to the brown lemur in some parts of its range (2) (5).