This paper provides a checklist and summary of what is currently known of the variation in infant contact, sleeping site preference and aspects of social cohesion in the nocturnal primates of Africa. Genera and species are compared, based on previously unpublished field observations and a review of the literature. There is a clear pattern of similarity between the species within each genus and distinct differences between genera. Species in the same genus tend to be ecologically equivalent and replace each other allopatrically, whereas species in different genera are more likely to be sympatric, with up to 6 species living together. Maximum sympatry within genera is found in Otolemur and Galagoİdes, where species are ecologically divergent. This may reflect an ancient origin of species within these genera or suggest that further taxonomic revision is required at the generic level. Some data are recorded for the first time for species that have only recently been separated (cryptic species), but some taxa remain very poorly known. It is concluded that field studies are still at an elementary stage and further research with radio tracking is urgently needed in the face of rapidly declining habitats.

Previous studies have shown the taxonomic value of vocal repertoires and hand (volar) pad characteristics in the classification of cryptic nocturnal primates such as bush babies. However, no study included quantitative comparisons within the geographical range of any one species. We investigated levels of intraspecific variation in calls and hand pad characteristics of the southern lesser bush baby ( Galago moholi ), using the northern lesser bush baby ( Galago senegalensis ) for interspecific comparisons. Examination of calls recorded from different regions along a transect of 1500 km across southern Africa revealed low levels of intraspecific variation in Galago moholi , whereas comparisons with homologous call-types in G. senegalensis revealed them to be significantly different. Volar pad measurements across the ranges of both species also showed low levels of intraspecific variation and relatively high interspecific variation. These findings demonstrate that vocal and volar pad characteristics can be used as consistent measures of difference between species that look almost identical. These methods provide a practical means of distinguishing between cryptic species, whether in the field, in captivity, or, in the case of volar pads, of preserved specimens.

Chemical transport models rely on meteorological analyses to provide temperatures which control model chemistry. An accurate representation of stratospheric temperatures becomes particularly important when temperatures at which polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) are thought to form and chlorine activation begin are approached. This study examines the errors in United Kingdom Meteorological Office (UKMO) lower stratospheric temperatures during the winter 1994/95 by comparing them with temperatures obtained independently by ozonesondes during the same winter. The study shows that there is a consistently positive bias in the analysed temperatures which leads to a mean overestimation of lower stratospheric temperatures of up to 1.7 K at the NAT point. There is also a significant random scatter which increases with altitude. If corrections in analysis temperature are made for both bias and scatter, considerably larger areas of the Northern Hemisphere are exposed to temperatures below the NAT point and frost point and hence chemical activation. These discrepancies in the UKMO temperature fields have important implications for modeling studies carried out using these analyses.