A lemur eats iced fruits at Zagreb Zoo in Zagreb, Croatia, June 27, 2019. A heat wave hit Croatia and many parts of Europe in recent days. (Xinhua/Tomislav Miletic)

At least two species of Madagascar lemurs teetering on the brink of extinction because of deforestation could be pushed over the edge by climate change, researchers said Monday.

Ruffed lemurs could lose more than 90 percent of their habitat within 50 years as a result of global warming and habitat loss combined, they reported in the journal Nature Climate Change.

Because the tree-hugging, saucer-eyed fruit eaters are the only vehicle for distributing the seeds of numerous rare plants in Madagascar's rainforest, their demise could damage entire ecosystems.

"Loss of either species will probably have cascading effect on the structure and integrity of remaining forest," the researchers said.

Varecia variegata and its close cousin Varecia rubra are already "critically endangered" on the IUCN's Red List because of hunting, habitat loss, forest fragmentation and invasive species.

More than 95 percent of Madagascar's 101 lemur species are endangered to one degree or another, probably making them the most imperilled group of vertebrates.

The island nation accounts for five percent of the world's unique plant and animal species.

So far, global warming has had less impact than other drivers of extinction, though 1 C warming over the last century has been enough to push fauna and flora towards more hospitable climes.

AFP