Along with the indri, this species is one of the two largest living lemurs, with an average weight of 6.5 kg[4] and a total adult length of approximately 105 centimetres (41 inches),[5] half of which is its tail.

The long white fur encircling his muzzle and covering its cheeks, forehead and chin, engenders the "diadem" or crown appearance.

Only the male is endowed with a large cutaneous gland at the exterior center of the throat, which feature is typically reddish brown.

[citation needed] The diademed sifaka is one of the mostly widely distributed member of the genus Propithecus, although definitive mapping of its range has not been conducted.

[citation needed] Specific locations for sighting the diademed sifaka are Mantadia National Park (approximately three hours in driving time from the capital city of Antananarivo) and in the forests of Tsinjoarivo.

[9] The diademed sifaka forms groups typically of two to ten individuals, which may include multiple male and female adults.

This diurnal lemur further diversifies its diet by consuming not only fruits, but certain flowers, seeds and verdant leaves, in proportions that vary by season.

[citation needed] For a large lemur, the diademed sifaka is rather athletic, being capable of lateral aerial propulsion of up to 30 kilometers per hour, a result of muscular leg thrusting action pushing off from a vertical tree trunk.

Pressures of population growth in central and eastern Madagascar are causing many of the rural poor to seek subsistence by seizing whatever forest lands are available and undertaking slash-and-burn tactics as their initial step in a shifting cultivation system.

They share similar characteristics of gestation length (four months), age of sexual maturity, female dominance, life expectancy (18 years) and propensity for sunbathing while stretched out on a branch.