The finding was presented August 10, 2005, along with the discovery of the northern giant mouse lemur (Mirza zaza) as a separate species.

[4] The average size ranges from 45 to 48 grams (1.6 to 1.7 oz), with males being slightly larger than females.

[4] Goodman's mouse lemur is mainly maroon with a white underbelly and orange tint on their backs.

[5] It has been proposed that the larger area is due to being chased away from better feeding grounds by the dominant females.

[5] In addition to mutualistic sleeping behavior, these lemurs share another positive social interaction.

[5][7][6] The genus Microcebus is shown to have diverged approximately ten to nine million years ago.

[8] Goodman's mouse lemur has been grouped with five other species due to mitochondrial DNA sequencing.

[8] 540 thousand years ago, M. marohita initially split from the other four mouse lemur populations within that clade.

[8] The most recent split was about 52 thousand years ago when M. lehilahytsara and M. mittermeieri became two distinct species.