what is a bush baby

A bush baby is a small, nocturnal primate from Africa, known for its huge eyes, big ears, and baby‑like cries that give it its name.

What a bush baby is

• Bush babies (also called galagos) are tiny tree‑dwelling primates related to monkeys, apes, and humans.

• They live in sub‑Saharan Africa in forests, thickets, savannas, and sometimes near people.

• There are at least 20 recognized species, and scientists suspect there may be more.

How they look

• They have round, saucer‑like eyes adapted for night vision, and large ears that swivel to detect insects in the dark.

• Their fur is soft and woolly, usually gray or brown with yellowish or reddish tones, and they have long balancing tails.

• Most are very small, roughly squirrel‑sized, from about 5–8 inches in body length and a few ounces up to around 3 pounds for the largest species.

Behavior and lifestyle

• Bush babies are nocturnal, spending the day hidden in tree hollows or nests and becoming active at night.

• They are famous jumpers: strong hind legs let them leap several meters between branches when hunting or escaping danger.

• They usually live in small family groups, and mothers often raise their young in tree cavities or old bird nests.

What they eat

• Bush babies are omnivores: they eat insects, fruit, tree gum, and sometimes small animals.

• Some species specialize in licking gum that oozes from acacia and other trees, plus dew and rainwater caught in bark and crevices.

Why people talk about them

• Online, people often share photos and videos of bush babies because of their “cute” appearance and big eyes.

• Their eerie cries—often compared to a human baby crying in the dark—also appear in African folklore and modern stories, giving them a slightly mysterious reputation.

TL;DR: A bush baby is a tiny, nocturnal African primate (a galago) with huge eyes, big ears, incredible leaping ability, and a cry that sounds like a human baby, living in trees and eating insects, fruit, and tree gum.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.