Winged lemur

A Winged-Lemur is a small, energetic animal. It is critically endangered. Momo, the most prominent Winged-Lemur to be seen, first appeared in "The Southern Air Temple". Several other unnamed lemurs (including some differently colored) are seen opportunistically eating smashed cakes on the heads of several elder monks in a flashback in the same episode. The Winged-Lemurs have their own theme song. While it is normally fast and lively, the music is played in a slow, relaxed way while Momo is gorging himself in "The King of Omashu".

Anatomy
A Winged-Lemur is equipped with special wings attached to its arms that allow flight. It has a prominent black face, with two proportionately large green eyes, although its fur is mostly white with several black stripes. Other color markings have been seen in "The Southern Air Temple". The Winged-Lemur has two very wide, large ears on its head that give it fantastic hearing. Its bones are presumed to be hollow like birds', which makes the lemur very lightweight. This makes the creature particularly difficult to catch, as it is quick and agile. The lemur seems to have a very acute sense of smell, as it is able to detect food from a moderate distance.

Connection
Real world lemurs are very similar in appearance to the Winged-Lemur with regards to its body shape, color and face. The other half of the Winged-Lemur's body structure appears to be bat-like. Its wings are very similar to those of bats as well. There may be a connection to real life flying squirrels that glide also. Furthermore, the lemur resembles the common house cat, due to its demeanor and curiosity. Winged-Lemurs may be based from the colugos, referred to as the "flying lemurs" of the real world.



Tamed Behavior
The lemurs were the Air Nomad children's favorite pets. Airbenders trained them to do many tasks, one of which was to retrieve their staffs if they dropped them off of their Flying Bison. The Winged-Lemur loves food, and is not above taking it directly out of the hands of any person who might be holding it at the time. The lemur is also presumed to be a common house pet of the Air Nomads. As seen in "The Runaway," they like to be petted like dogs or cats. When a Winged-Lemur is frightened, or is threatening an enemy, it raises its back, and hisses much like a common house cat.

Speculation
It is possible that there are other Winged-Lemurs at the Eastern Air Temple, as that area was briefly explored during the series. More so, it is probable that there are Winged-Lemurs living around the vicinity of the Western Air Temple, as Mike and Bryan mentioned that they had pondered on the idea of having the team find a group of Winged-Lemurs in this temple, though this idea never made it into the storyboard.