In
zoology, a
folivore is a
herbivore that specializes in eating
leaves. Mature leaves contain a high proportion of hard-to-digest
cellulose and relatively little energy. For this reason folivorous animals tend to have long
digestive tracts and slow
metabolisms. Many enlist the help of
symbiotic bacteria to release the nutrients in their diet.
It has been observed that folivory is extremely rare among flying animals.[1] Morton (1978) attributed this to the fact that leaves are heavy, slow to digest, and contain little energy relative to other foods.[1] The Hoatzin is an example of a flighted, folivorous bird.
Some bats are partially folivorous; their method of deriving nourishment from leaves, according to Lowry (1989), is to chew up the leaves, swallowing the sap and spitting out the remainder. [2]
Standard ecological theory predicts relatively large group sizes for folivorous primates, as large groups offer better collective defense against predators and they face little competition for food among each other. It has been observed that these animals nevertheless frequently live in small groups. Explanations offered for this apparent paradox include social factors such as increased incidence of infanticide in large groups. [4]
