CreatureData

Spectral tarsier

Tarsius tarsier (Erxleben, 1777)

VUVulnerableprimates

The spectral tarsier (Tarsius tarsier) is a species in the family Tarsiidae, order Primates. Recorded adults weigh 168 g to 173 g and live up to 12 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Vulnerable.

Spectral tarsier (Tarsius tarsier)
Photo: Forest Botial-Jarvis · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the spectral tarsier

Weight
168 g – 173 gsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Lifespan
12 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Invertivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
Not recorded
Gestation
176 dayssrc for Gestation
Young per litter or clutch
1src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
16.5 monthssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1.84src for Litters or clutches a year
Active
At night (nocturnal)src for Active
Lifestyle
Arborealsrc for Lifestyle
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

Where does the spectral tarsier live?

Not recorded

What is the spectral tarsier?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

Spectral tarsier or Selayar tarsier (Tarsius tarsier, also called Tarsius spectrum) is a species of tarsier found on the island of Selayar in Indonesia. It is apparently less specialized than the Philippine tarsier or Horsfield's tarsier; for example, it lacks adhesive toes. It is the type species for the genus Tarsius. While its range used to also include the population on nearby southwestern Sulawesi, this population has been reclassified as a separate species, Tarsius fuscus. Some of the earlier research published on Tarsius spectrum refers to the taxon that was recently reclassified and elevated to a separate species, the Gursky's spectral tarsier (Tarsius spectrumgurskyae).

From the Wikipedia article “Spectral tarsier” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Spectral_tarsier&oldid=1383662458), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.

Is the spectral tarsier endangered?

The spectral tarsier is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species.

How is the spectral tarsier classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classMammalia
  4. orderPrimates
  5. familyTarsiidae
  6. genusTarsius
  7. SpeciesTarsius tarsier (Erxleben, 1777)

Synonyms Lemur tarsier, Tarsius buffonii, Tarsius daubentonii, Tarsius fuscomanus, Tarsius fuscus fuscomanus, Tarsius macrotarsos, Tarsius pallassii, Tarsius podje, Tarsius spectrum

Other names and names in other languages (18)
  • Eastern tarsierEnglish
  • Selayar tarsierEnglish
  • Sulawesi tarsierEnglish
  • Sulawesi tarsierEnglish
  • أبخص طيفيArabic
  • ترسير طيفيArabic
  • Selayar-KoboldmakiGerman
  • Κοινός ΤάρσιοςGreek
  • Tarsero de Sulawesi Suroriental y la Isla SelayarSpanish
  • Tarsier des CélèbesFrench
  • Maki follettoItalian
  • Tarsio di CélèbesItalian
  • Tarsio spettroItalian
  • スラウェシメガネザルJapanese
  • wyrak upiornyPolish
  • Маки-домовойRussian
  • Восточный долгопятRussian
  • Долгопят-привидениеRussian

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistWikidataIUCN Red List

Relatives of the spectral tarsier

Other species in the same genus Tarsius.

EN, Endangered

Pygmy tarsier

Tarsius pumilus

TarsiidaeNo free photo yet

VU, Vulnerable

Dian's tarsier

Tarsius dentatus

TarsiidaeNo free photo yet

EN, Endangered

Sangihe tarsier

Tarsius sangirensis

TarsiidaeNo free photo yet

CompareSpectral tarsier vs Pygmy tarsierSpectral tarsier vs Peleng tarsierSpectral tarsier vs Dian's tarsierSpectral tarsier vs Sangihe tarsier

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the spectral tarsier?

An adult spectral tarsier weighs 168 g – 173 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the spectral tarsier endangered?

The spectral tarsier is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.

How long does the spectral tarsier live?

The spectral tarsier has a recorded lifespan of 12 years.

How long is the spectral tarsier pregnant?

The recorded gestation period is 176 days.

What kind of animal is the spectral tarsier?

The spectral tarsier (Tarsius tarsier) belongs to the family Tarsiidae in the order Primates.

Sources and how to cite this page

Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Spectral tarsier (Tarsius tarsier). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/spectral-tarsier

MLA

“Spectral tarsier (Tarsius tarsier).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/spectral-tarsier.

BibTeX
@misc{spectral_tarsier_2026,
  title = {Spectral tarsier (Tarsius tarsier)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/spectral-tarsier},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}