Giant aye-aye

The giant aye-aye (Daubentonia robusta) is an extinct lemur from Madagascar and the only known relative of the living aye-aye; together the two are the only known species of the genus Daubentonia. It is known only from subfossil remains and is believed to have died out less than 1,000 years ago. As of 2004 the remains consisted of four incisors, a tibia and other postcranial material, and no skull has been found. They come from the southern and southeastern parts of Madagascar, outside the range of the living aye-aye, which suggests the two species diverged through allopatric speciation. Some incisors carry drilled holes that suggest human modification, hinting that people may have played a part in its extinction. It resembled the aye-aye but had more robust limbs with different proportions, and from mandible, incisor and limb measurements it is thought to have been 2.5 to 5 times larger than the living species. Like the aye-aye it had an elongated, thin third digit and probably filled a similar niche, tap-foraging and gouging insects and larvae out of tree bark.