Simmons' Mouse Lemur

Open encyclopedia reference

Simmons' mouse lemur (Microcebus simmonsi) is a species of mouse lemur known only from Betampona Special Reserve, Analalava Special Community Reserve near Foulpointe, and Zahamena National Park in Madagascar.

The species is named in honor of Dr. Lee Simmons, former director of the Omaha Henry Doorly Zoo in Nebraska.

Simmons' mouse lemur is the largest of the east coast mouse lemurs. The body is dark reddish to orange brown with black-tipped hairs on the crown and sometimes a stripe down middle of the back. There is a distinctive white patch on the snout and the belly is grayish white to white.

The discovery of this species was announced June 21, 2006 at the Conservation International Global Symposium in Antananarivo, Madagascar, along with the discovery of Mittermeier's mouse lemur Microcebus mittermeieri and Jolly's mouse lemur Microcebus jollyae as separate species. These new species were also officially announced in a paper in the International Journal of Primatology.

Wikipedia contributors, Simmons' mouse lemur; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:43:35.546581+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Microcebus simmonsi Louis Jr., Coles, Andriantompohavana, Sommer, Engberg, Zaonarivelo, Mayor & Brenneman, 2006

Name authority

Louis Jr., Coles, Andriantompohavana, Sommer, Engberg, Zaonarivelo, Mayor & Brenneman, 2006

Common name

Simmons' Mouse Lemur

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Primates

Family

Cheirogaleidae

Genus

Microcebus

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
9. subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
10. infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
11. orderPrimates Linnaeus, 1758
12. suborderStrepsirrhini É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1812
13. infraorderLemuriformes Gray, 1821
14. superfamilyCheirogaleoidea Gray, 1873
15. familyCheirogaleidae Gray, 1873
16. genusMicrocebus É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1834
17. speciesMicrocebus simmonsi Louis Jr., Coles, Andriantompohavana, Sommer, Engberg, Zaonarivelo, Mayor & Brenneman, 2006

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Microcebus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 39 records assigned to Cheirogaleidae.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=944036 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:42SC4. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.