On October 4, 1997, Jovian, the lemur that many television watchers came to know as Zoboomafoo, was introduced to the custom made sound stage at the Duke Lemur Center.
Jovian is a Coquerel’s sifaka, a species of lemur native to Madagascar. He was selected to appear in the educational wildlife show, “Zoboomafoo,” produced by Chris and Martin Kratt. The latter was a graduate of Duke University and had volunteered at the Lemur Center while in school.
The award-winning children’s show starred Jovian as Zoboomafoo, and included a puppet lookalike for scenes in which Zoboomafoo talked. For the program, a sound stage was attached to an animal care building, where Jovian lived with his parents while the live portions of the show were being filmed.
Zoboomafoo ended production in 2001. Since then Jovian has enjoyed his retirement in a natural habitat enclosure at the Lemur Center.
The Duke Lemur Center, formerly the Duke University Primate Center, was established to explore the genetic foundations of primate behavior. Today researchers investigate a wide variety of disciplines including behavior, physiology, paleontology and conservation biology.
Visit: The Duke Lemur Center in Durham. Tour information is available on their website.
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