Glossary

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land tenure – Rights of ownership of land. Many indigenous people are struggling to have state authorities recognize their tenure of traditional lands.

langur – Leaf monkeys (mainly Presbytis spp.; Family: Cercophithecidae). Langurs are about six kilogram monkeys found in the rainforests and gallery forests of Asia. They only eat leaves.

lateritic – In general, any reddish soil developed as a result of the weathering (natural erosion) of soil. The red color is due to the presence of hydrated iron or aluminum oxides. Laterite is the most eroded soil possible and thus low in nutrients – as in many tropical soils.

larvae – The wingless and often wormlike young that hatch from the eggs of many insects.

lemurs – An order of primates found only in Madagascar that are thought to resemble the early ancestors of monkeys, apes and humans. They live in trees, eat leaves and fruit, and most are social. They range from tiny (the pygmy mouse lemur weighs only 30 grams) to about 7 kilograms.

lion tamarins – (Family: Callitrichidae) Small, squirrel-sized monkeys found only in eastern South America. They are social, live in trees and eat insects and whatever they can catch. They are relatives of marmosets. The lion tamarins have a mane, like a lion. Habitat destruction has made many of the species endangered.

loris – (Nycticebus spp.; Family: Lorisidae) Small, cat-sized relatives of lemurs that are found in Asia. They live in trees and are a solitary, wide-eyed nocturnal species that eats invertebrates and small sleeping vertebrates that they catch. Habitat destruction and the pet trade are threatening the lorises.