View source for Potto

{{short description|Arboreal primate of west-central Africa}}
{{other uses}}
{{distinguish|Potoo|Pottu}}
{{Automatic taxobox
| name = Potto<ref name=msw3>{{MSW3 Groves|page=123}}</ref>
| image = PottoCincyZoo.jpg
| display_parents = 2
| taxon = Perodicticus
| type_species = ''[[Perodicticus potto|Lemur potto]]''
| type_species_authority = [[Philipp Ludwig Statius Müller|Müller]], 1766
| subdivision_ranks = Species
| subdivision = ''[[Perodicticus edwardsi]]''<br /> 
''[[Perodicticus ibeanus]]''<br />
''[[Perodicticus potto]]''
| authority = [[Edward Turner Bennett|Bennett]], 1831
| range_map = Perodicticus potto distribution.svg
| range_map_caption = Geographic range of all three species
}}

The '''pottos''' are three species of [[strepsirrhine]] [[primate]] in the genus '''''Perodicticus''''' of the family [[Lorisidae]]. In some English-speaking parts of [[Africa]], they are called "softly-softlys".<ref name="Britannica">{{Cite web | title = Potto (primate) | year = 2013 | publisher = Encyclopædia Britannica | url = http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/472935/potto | access-date = 2013-03-15}}</ref>

==Etymology==
The common name "potto" may be from [[Wolof language|Wolof]] {{lang|wo|pata}} (a tailless monkey).<ref>{{Merriam-Webster|potto}}</ref>

The [[generic name (biology)|generic name]] ''Perodicticus'' is composed of Greek {{wikt-lang|grc|πηρός}} ({{transliteration|grc|pērós}}, 'maimed') and {{wikt-lang|grc|δεικτικός}} ({{transliteration|grc|deiktikós}}, "able to show/indicate", cf. {{wikt-lang|el|δείκτης}}, {{transliteration|el|deíktēs}}, 'index finger'). It refers to the stubby index finger that seems mutilated.<ref>{{cite book|last=Whitney|first=William Dwight|title=The Century Dictionary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JXNPAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA4409|year=1890|publisher=Century Co.|page=4409|quote= [[Neo-Latin|NL.]] ([[Edward Turner Bennett|Bennett]]), < [[ancient Greek language|Gr.]] {{lang|grc|πηρός}}, maimed, + {{wikt-lang|grc|δεικτικός}}, serving to point out (with ref. to the index-finger): see ''{{linktext|deictic}}''.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Palmer|first=Theodore Sherman|title=Index Generum Mammalium|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WdnPAAAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA525|year=1904|publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office|page=525|quote= so called from the rudimentary index finger.}}</ref>

==Taxonomy==
There are three species recognized by the [[IUCN Red List]] and [[American Society of Mammalogists]]:<ref name=msw3/><ref name="ButynskiDeJong2007">{{Cite journal | last1 = Butynski | first1 = T. M. | last2 = De Jong | first2 = Y. A. | title = Distribution of the potto ''Perodicticus potto'' (Primates: Lorisidae) in eastern Africa, with a description of a new subspecies from Mount Kenya | journal = Journal of East African Natural History | volume = 96 | issue = 2 | pages = 113–147| year = 2007 | doi = 10.2982/0012-8317(2007)96[113:DOTPPP]2.0.CO;2 | s2cid = 86208015 | issn = <!-- 0012-8317 -->}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|last=Database|first=Mammal Diversity|title=Mammal Diversity Database|date=2021-11-06|doi=10.5281/zenodo.5651212 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/5651212|access-date=2021-11-08}}</ref>

Formerly, all species were classified under one species, ''P. potto''. However, variation among pottos is significant,  prompting speculation that there may be more than one species. A 2015 study confirmed there to be three distinct potto species with deep genetic divergence dating to the [[Miocene]] for all three species.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Pozzi|first1=Luca|last2=Nekaris|first2=K. Anne-Isola|last3=Perkin|first3=Andrew|last4=Bearder|first4=Simon K.|last5=Pimley|first5=Elizabeth R.|last6=Schulze|first6=Helga|last7=Streicher|first7=Ulrike|last8=Nadler|first8=Tilo|last9=Kitchener|first9=Andrew|last10=Zischler|first10=Hans|last11=Zinner|first11=Dietmar|date=2015|title=Remarkable ancient divergences amongst neglected lorisiform primates|journal=Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society|language=en|volume=175|issue=3|pages=661–674|doi=10.1111/zoj.12286|issn=1096-3642|pmc=4744660|pmid=26900177}}</ref>

A few closely related species also have "potto" in their names: the two [[golden potto]] species (also known as angwantibos) and the [[false potto]]. Although it has been suggested that the differences that separate the false potto from the West African potto are a result of an anomalous specimen being used as the [[holotype]] which may have been a West African potto.<ref name="Stump2005">{{cite thesis | last1 = Stump | first1 = D.P. | year = 2005 | url = http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/7980 | publisher = University of Pittsburgh | page = 199 | title = Taxonomy of the genus ''Perodicticus'' | degree = PhD }}</ref>

The [[Americas|Central and South American]] [[kinkajou]] (''Potos flavus'') and [[Bassaricyon|olingos]] (''[[Bassaricyon]]'' sp.) are similar in appearance and behavior to African pottos, and were formerly classified with them (hence ''Potos''). Olingos and kinkajous are now known to be members of the [[Procyonidae|raccoon family]].<ref name=ZooKeys>{{cite journal |title=Taxonomic revision of the olingos (''Bassaricyon''), with description of a new species, the Olinguito |last1=Helgen |first1=K. M. |last2=Pinto |first2=M. |last3=Kays |first3=R. |last4=Helgen |first4=L. |last5=Tsuchiya |first5=M. |last6=Quinn |first6=A. |last7=Wilson |first7=D. |last8=Maldonado |first8=J.|journal= ZooKeys|issue= 324|date= 2013-08-15|pages= 1–83|doi= 10.3897/zookeys.324.5827 |pmid=24003317 |pmc=3760134|doi-access=free |bibcode=2013ZooK..324....1H }}</ref><ref name="Koepfli2007">{{cite journal| title=Phylogeny of the Procyonidae (Mammalia: Carvnivora): Molecules, morphology and the Great American Interchange|author1=K.-P. Koepfli |author2=M. E. Gompper |author3=E. Eizirik |author4=C.-C. Ho |author5=L. Linden |author6=J. E. Maldonado |author7=R. K. Wayne | journal= Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume=43 | issue=3 | pages=1076–1095| year=2007 |doi= 10.1016/j.ympev.2006.10.003| pmid=17174109|bibcode=2007MolPE..43.1076K }}</ref><ref name="EizirikMurphy2010">{{cite journal|last1=Eizirik|first1=E.|last2=Murphy|first2=W. J.|last3=Koepfli|first3=K.-P.|last4=Johnson|first4=W. E.|last5=Dragoo|first5=J. W.|last6=Wayne|first6=R. K.|last7=O'Brien|first7=S. J.|title=Pattern and timing of diversification of the mammalian order Carnivora inferred from multiple nuclear gene sequences|journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution|volume= 56|issue=1|date= 2010-02-04|pages= 49–63|doi= 10.1016/j.ympev.2010.01.033|pmid=20138220|pmc=7034395|bibcode=2010MolPE..56...49E }}</ref>
{{Species table |no-note=y |genus=[[Perodicticus]] |authority-name=[[Edward Turner Bennett|Bennett]] |authority-year=1831 |species-count=three|narrow-percent=75}}
{{Species table/row
|name=[[Central African potto]] |binomial=P. edwardsi
|image=File:Perodicticus potto - Royal Museum for Central Africa - DSC06787.JPG |image-size=180px |image-alt=Brown potto
|authority-name=[[Eugène Louis Bouvier|Bouvier]] |authority-year=1879
|range=Central Africa |range-image= |range-image-size=180px
|size={{convert|30|–|37|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long, plus {{convert|3|–|7|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} tail<ref name="MamAfrica399"/>
|habitat=Forest<ref name="IUCNCentralAfricanpotto"/>
|hunting=Gum, insects, snails and fruit<ref name="IUCNCentralAfricanpotto"/>
|iucn-status=LC |population=Unknown
|direction={{decrease|Population declining}}<ref name="IUCNCentralAfricanpotto"/>
}}
{{Species table/row
|name=[[East African potto]] |binomial=P. ibeanus
|image=File:East African Potto.jpg |image-size=180px |image-alt=Brown potto
|authority-name=[[Oldfield Thomas|Thomas]] |authority-year=1910
|range=East central Africa |range-image= |range-image-size=180px
|subspecies={{Collapsible list |expand=yes |title=Two subspecies |bullets=on
| ''P. i. ibeanus'' (Eastern potto)
| ''P. i. stockleyi'' (Mount Kenya potto)
}}
|size={{convert|29|–|37|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long, plus {{convert|4|–|10|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} tail<ref name="MamAfrica399"/>
|habitat=Forest<ref name="IUCNEastAfricanpotto"/>
|hunting=Fruit, gum, nectar, and invertebrates, as well as moss, frogs, and eggs<ref name="IUCNEastAfricanpotto"/>
|iucn-status=LC |population=Unknown
|direction={{steady|Population steady}}<ref name="IUCNEastAfricanpotto"/>
}}
{{Species table/row
|name=[[West African potto]] |binomial=P. potto
|image=File:PottoCincyZoo.jpg |image-size=180px |image-alt=Brown potto
|authority-name=[[Philipp Ludwig Statius Müller|P. Müller]] |authority-year=1766 |authority-not-original=yes
|range=Western equatorial Africa |range-image= |range-image-size=180px
|size={{convert|30|–|39|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} long, plus {{convert|3|–|10|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} tail<ref name="ADWWestAfricanpotto"/>
|habitat=Forest<ref name="IUCNWestAfricanpotto"/>
|hunting=Fruit, arthropods, insects, and eggs, as well as small vertebrates<ref name="ADWWestAfricanpotto"/>
|iucn-status=NT |population=Unknown
|direction={{decrease|Population declining}}<ref name="IUCNWestAfricanpotto"/>
}}
{{Species table/end}}

==Description==
[[File:Potto hand Mivart.png|thumb|left|Potto hand<ref>Mivart 1871</ref>]]
The potto grows to a length of 30 to 39&nbsp;cm, with a short (3 to 10&nbsp;cm) tail, and its weight varies from {{Convert|600|to|1600|g|oz}}.<ref name="ADW" /> The close, woolly fur is grey-brown. The index finger is [[vestigiality|vestigial]], although it has [[Thumb#Opposition and apposition|opposable thumbs]] with which it grasps branches firmly. Like other strepsirrhines the potto has a moist nose, [[toothcomb]], and a [[toilet claw]] on the second toe of the hind legs. In the hands and feet, fingers three and four are connected to each other by a slight skin fold, while toes three through five are joined at their bases by a skin web that extends to near the proximal third of the toes.<ref>{{cite book | chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5fttVRAHA4MC&pg=PA340 | title = Primate anatomy: an introduction | chapter = Hands and Feet | page = 340 | first = F. | last = Ankel-Simons | publisher = Academic Press | year = 2000 | isbn = 0-12-058670-3}}</ref>

The neck has four to six low [[Tubercle (anatomy)|tubercles]] or growths that cover its elongated vertebrae which have sharp points and nearly pierce the skin; these are used as defensive weapons.<ref name="Estes1991" /> Both males and females have large [[scent gland]]s under the tail (in females, the swelling created by the glands is known as a pseudo-scrotum), which they use to mark their territories and to reinforce pair bonds.<ref name="ThePrimata" /> The potto has a distinct odor that some observers have likened to curry.<ref name="ADW" />

==Distribution and habitat==
Pottos inhabit the canopy of rain forests in tropical [[Africa]]: from [[Nigeria]], [[Guinea]] to [[Kenya]] and [[Uganda]] into the north of the [[Democratic Republic of Congo]].<ref name="iucn">{{cite iucn |author=Svensson, M., Oates, J.F., Pimley, E. & Gonedelé Bi, S.|title= ''Perodicticus potto'' |year= 2020|article-number= e.T91995408A92248699|access-date=10 July 2020}}</ref> They are [[nocturnal]] and [[arboreal]], sleeping during the day in the leaves and almost never descending from the trees.<ref name="ThePrimata">{{Cite web | url = http://www.theprimata.com/perodicticus_potto.html | title = Potto (''Perodicticus potto'') | publisher = The Primata | first = S. | last = Flannery | year = 2007 | access-date = 2013-03-15 | archive-date = 2016-03-03 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160303172024/http://www.theprimata.com/perodicticus_potto.html | url-status = usurped }}</ref>

==Behaviour and ecology==
[[File:Perodicticus potto - Royal Museum for Central Africa - DSC06787.JPG|thumb|right|Potto gripping branches]]

Pottos move slowly and carefully, always gripping a branch with at least two limbs. They are also quiet and avoid predators using [[crypsis|cryptic]] movement. The most common call is a high-pitched "tsic", which is used mainly between mother and offspring.<ref name="Estes1991">{{Cite book | title = The Behavior Guide to African Mammals | url = https://archive.org/details/isbn_0520080858 | url-access = registration | quote = potto. | first = R. D. | last = Estes | author-link = Richard Despard Estes | publisher = University of California Press | year = 1991 | pages = [https://archive.org/details/isbn_0520080858/page/458 458]–464}}</ref>

Studies of stomach contents have shown the potto diet consists of about 65% fruit, 21% [[tree gum]]s and 10% insects.<ref name="Estes1991" /> Pottos have also occasionally been known to catch bats and small birds.<ref name="ThePrimata" /> Their strong jaws enable it to eat fruits and lumps of dried gum that are too tough for other tree-dwellers. The insects they eat tend to have a strong smell and are generally not eaten by other animals.<ref name="ADW">{{Cite web | title = ''Perodicticus potto'' | first = K. | last = McCann | editor1 = Dewey, T. | editor2 = Rasmussen, P. | year = 2009 | publisher = Animal Diversity Web | url = http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/Perodicticus_potto/ | access-date = 2013-03-15}}</ref>

Pottos have large territories which they [[territorial marking|mark with urine]] and glandular secretions. Same-sex intruders are vehemently guarded against, and each male's territory generally overlaps with that of two or more females. Females have been known to donate part of their territories to their daughters, but sons leave their mother's territory upon maturity.<ref name="ADW" />

As part of their courting rituals, pottos often meet for bouts of [[Social grooming|mutual grooming]]. This is frequently performed while they hang upside down from a branch. Grooming consists of licking, combing fur with the grooming claw and teeth, and anointing with the scent glands. Pottos mate face-to-face while hanging upside down from a branch.<ref name="ADW" /><ref name="ARKive">{{Cite web | title = Perodicticus potto | date = 2010-10-12 | editor = Pimley, E. | publisher = ARKive | access-date = 2013-03-15 | url = http://www.arkive.org/potto/perodicticus-potto/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130126170943/http://www.arkive.org/potto/perodicticus-potto/ | archive-date = 2013-01-26 }}</ref>

After a [[gestation]] period of about 193–205 days, the female gives birth, typically to a single young, but twins are known to occur. The young first are clasped to the belly of the mother, but later she carries them on her back. She can also hide her young in the leaves while searching for food. After about six months, they are weaned, and are fully mature after about 18 months.<ref name="ADW" />

===Predators and defences===
[[File:Bosmans potto skeleton.JPG|thumb|right|''Perodicticus potto'' skeleton]]
Pottos have relatively few predators, because large [[mammal]]ian [[carnivore]]s cannot climb to the treetops where they live, and the [[bird of prey|birds of prey]] in this part of Africa are [[Diurnal animal|diurnal]].<ref name="Estes1991" /><!--Page 466--> Pottos living near villages face some predation from [[human]]s, who hunt them as [[bushmeat]]; the [[West African potto]] is thought to be threatened due to this.<ref>''Hunting for Sustainability in Tropical Forests'', edited by John Robinson and Elizabeth Bennett ([[Columbia University Press]], 1999)</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Oates|first1=John|last2=University)|first2=Magdalena Svensson (Oxford Brookes|last3=University)|first3=Sery Gonedelé Bi (Felix Houphouet Boigny|last4=Pimley|first4=Elizabeth|date=2020-01-20|title=IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Perodicticus potto|url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/en|journal=IUCN Red List of Threatened Species}}</ref> They are sometimes preyed upon by [[African palm civet]]s, although African palm civets are largely [[frugivorous]].<ref name="ADW" />

If threatened, the potto will hide its face and neck-butt its opponent, making use of its unusual vertebrae. It can also deliver a powerful bite. Its [[saliva]] contains compounds that cause the wound to become inflamed.<ref name="ADW" />

The highest recorded life span for a potto in captivity is 26 years.<ref name="Cowgill_etal1985">{{Cite web | url = https://www.brown.edu/Research/Primate/lpn24-1.html#potto | title = The Longevity of a Colony of Captive Nocturnal Prosimians (''Perodicticus potto'') | first1 = U. M. | last1 = Cowgill | first2 = S. J. | last2 = States | first3 = K. J. | last3 = States | publisher = Laboratory Primate Newsletter | year = 1985 | access-date = 2013-03-15}}</ref>

===Cognition and social behaviour===
In a study of [[Strepsirrhini|strepsirrhine]] [[cognition]] conducted in 1964, pottos were seen to explore and manipulate unfamiliar objects, but only when those objects were baited with food. They were found to be more curious than [[loris]]es and [[lesser bushbaby|lesser bushbabies]], but less so than [[lemur]]s.<ref name="Cowgill1964">{{Cite journal 
| last1 = Cowgill | first1 = U. M. 
| title = Visiting in ''Perodicticus'' 
| doi = 10.1126/science.146.3648.1183 
| journal = Science 
| volume = 146 
| issue = 3648 
| pages = 1183–1184 
| year = 1964 
| pmid = 17832247 
| bibcode = 1964Sci...146.1183C 
| s2cid = 6684237 
}}</ref> [[Ursula Cowgill]], a biologist at [[Yale University]] who looked after six captive pottos for several decades, noticed they appeared to form [[altruistic]] relationships. The captive pottos were seen to spend time with a sick companion and to save food for an absent one. However, there is no confirmation this behaviour occurs in the wild.

==References==
{{Reflist |refs=
<ref name="MamAfrica399">[[#CITEREF_MammalAfrica|Kingdon et al.]], p. 399</ref>
<ref name="IUCNCentralAfricanpotto">{{cite iucn |last1=Svensson |first1=M. |last2=Pimley |first2=E. |title=''Perodicticus edwardsi'' |volume=2019 |article-number=e.T136852A91996061 |date=2019 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T136852A91996061.en}}</ref>
<ref name="IUCNEastAfricanpotto">{{cite iucn |last1=de Jong |first1=Y. A. |last2=Butynski |first2=T. M. |last3=Perkin |first3=A. |last4=Svensson |first4=M. |last5=Pimley |first5=E. |title=''Perodicticus ibeanus'' |volume=2019 |article-number=e.T136875A91996195 |date=2019 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T136875A91996195.en}}</ref>
<ref name="IUCNWestAfricanpotto">{{cite iucn |last1=Svensson |first1=M. |last2=Oates |first2=J. F. |last3=Pimley |first3=E. |last4=Gonedelé Bi |first4=S. |title=''Perodicticus potto'' |volume=2020 |article-number=e.T91995408A92248699 |date=2020 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-2.RLTS.T91995408A92248699.en}}</ref>
<ref name="ADWWestAfricanpotto">{{cite web |first1=Kristen |last1=McCann |title=''Perodicticus potto'' |url=https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Perodicticus_potto/ |date=2009 |website=[[Animal Diversity Web]] |publisher=[[University of Michigan]] |access-date=June 25, 2023}}</ref>
}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |title=[[Mammals of Africa]] |volume=2 |editor-last1=Kingdon |editor-first1=Jonathan |editor-last2=Happold |editor-first2=David |editor-last3=Butynski |editor-first3=Thomas |editor-last4=Hoffmann |editor-first4=Michael |editor-last5=Happold |editor-first5=Meredith |editor-last6=Kalina |editor-first6=Jan |date=2013 |publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-4081-8996-2 |ref=CITEREF_MammalAfrica}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
* {{Wikispecies-inline|Perodicticus}}
* {{Wikispecies-inline|Perodicticus potto}}
* {{Commons category-inline|Perodicticus potto}}

{{Lorisidae nav}}
{{Strepsirrhini|L.}}{{Taxonbar|from=Q19816393}}

[[Category:Lorises and galagos]]
[[Category:Primates of Africa]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Edward Turner Bennett]]