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On the list of things you probably don’t want to find yourself face-to-face with suddenly on a dark night would likely be this face, but in the light of day, the baby aye-aye is almost endearing.

This little darling named Elphaba was born at the Duke Lemur Center late last year, the twenty-eighth birth of this rare Madagascar primate since 1992.

“Due to its bizarre appearance and unusual feeding habits, the Aye-aye is considered by many to be the strangest primate in the world. It is the world’s largest nocturnal primate. Unusual physical characteristics include incisors that are continually growing (unique among primates), extremely large ears, and a middle finger which is skeletal in appearance, and is used by the animal as a primary sensory organ.”

According to National Geographic, part of the reason these tree-dwellers are so rare is that they were thought to be a bad omen and, therefore, killed on sight. Though it isn’t hard to see why someone might get a bit creeped out by those eyes and wicked middle fingers, we’re happy to know they’re having a better time at the Duke Lemur Center.

Full story at ZooBorns. Additional information via National Geographic.

Strange animals.