HABITAT AND RANGE:
Each tamarin family occupies an area of
about 100 acres of tropical rainforest.
The area is carefully marked by both
sexes with a honey like musk produced by
chest and genital glands.
At one time golden lion tamarins could
be found in the lowland rainforests of
southeastern Brazil within the States
of: Bahia, Esperito Santo, Guanabara,
Sao Paulo, and Rio de Janeiro. !law they
are restricted to the coastal mountain
regions from the southern part of
Esperito Santo to the western part of
the State of Rio de Janeiro; an area of
about 900 sq. Km.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
A golden lion tamarin's dark gray,
almost hairless face is ringed by a halo
of silky golden-red fur and punctuated
by small tufted ears (often concealed by
the nine), and large brown eyes. In the
sun drenched jungle canopy, filled with
brightly colored flowers and fruit, the
tamarin's golden coat serves as
camouflage. Perhaps their relatively
small size ( a head and body length of
13.3- 15.6" and weight of just 22.2 -25
oz.) also helps them to avoid detection.
ADAPTATIONS:
Like other primates, tamarins can leap
from branch to branch with unbelievable
speed and agility. Their long, narrow
hands and feet, and extremely elongated
fingers (just as long as their forearms)
allow them to grasp branches firmly,
while the 12" long tail assists with
balance. Tamarins are generally found in
the middle to upper layers (3-10 meters
off the ground) of the forest canopy.
They prefer dense spinney vegetation
that apparently serves as protection
from predators (snakes, birds of prey,
and man). Although tamarins are diurnal,
during the hottest part of the day they
will retreat to areas of dense foliage
in order to stay. out of the sun. At
night, when looking for a place in which
to sleep, tamarins seek tree cavities or
crevices.
Tamarins utter 17
different types of vocalizations. Trills
seem to be associated with solo
activity, clucks with foraging, long
calls with vigilance and whines for
contact.
DIET:
A tamarin's favorite dining spot is
created by bromeliads, a spinney
pineapple-like plant that grows high an
the trunks of rainforest trees. The
uppermost leaves of the bromeliad form a
cup that holds a small reservoir of
rainwater, which harbors the tamarin's
favorite food of insects and other
invertebrates. In the wild, tamarins
also eat fruit, flowers, plant gum ,
nectar, frogs, lizards and snails.
Ross Park Zoo
tamarins are fed: Fruit, eggs,
mealworms, crickets, muse pups, and a
commercially prepared food called
marmoset diet.
REPRODUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT:
After a 125-133 day gestation period,
monogamous tamarins produce 1-2 litters
during the September - March birthing
season. Immediately after birth the
young (usually twins), which look like
tiny, lighter replicas of the parents,
climb up onto their mother and cling to
her back or hindquarters. Every two
hours, they climb over to her chest for
their 15 minute nursing session. After
4-10 days the father takes over infant
care, only returning the babies to their
mother to nurse.
When the young are ready for solid food
the father prepares it by squeezing it
between his fingers. Apparently this
makes it easier for the young to digest.
The young my become independent at 3-5
months, but my still return to the
parent's fur in case of danger or when
seeking a warm place to sleep. Although
male tamarins are sexually mature at 24
months and females at 18 months,
tamarins often remain living in family
groups for an extended period of time.
It is not uncommon to see groups of up
to 8 individuals (an adult pair and
offspring from three litters) together.
Even juvenile tamarins past the age of 4
have been seen begging and receiving
food from their parents. These
youngsters are usually tolerated for
they assist with the care of younger
siblings. However, there does come a
time (not necessarily correlated with
the youths' sexual maturity) when they
are no longer tolerated; and golden lion
tamarins can be extremely aggressive to
each other. Tamarins live an average of
10 years in the wild, and have lived 15
years in
STATUS IN WILD:
At one time golden lion tamarins could
be found in Brazil throughout a 1,000
mile long belt of lowland rain-forest,
bordered by the Atlantic coast and the
Sierra del Mar Mountains. However, over
the years, habitat destruction has made
the tamarins one of the rarest mammals
in the world. Even now Brazilian
rainforests lose about 40,000 sq. miles
(an area about the size of Pennsylvania)
each year. Already 98% of the forests
the tamarins depend on have been cut. In
1978 the IUCN (International Union for
Conservation of Nature and Natural
Resources) listed the golden lion
tamarin as endangered. The USDI (United
States Department of Interior) followed
suit in 1980.
In spite of all
the habitat destruction, thanks in part
to efforts by the Brazilian government,
conservation groups, and many zoos, the
golden lion tamarin may be on the
comeback trail. To date (March 1990) 67
golden lion tarmarins have been released
in various localities as part of a
species survival plan program. A 12,000
acre preserve se aside by the Brazilian
government has been a prime release
site.
