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Pygmy marmoset - CEBUELLA PYGMAEA

Endangered

Class: Animals with Milk Glands (Mammalia)
Subclass: True Mammals (Eutheria)
Order: First Order Mammals (Primatea)
Family: Cebidae.

The word "Marmoset": "Marmoset" is an old French word for "grotesque figure."

Location: The upper reaches of the Amazon River in South America.

Habitat: Arboreal. Tropical forests.

Description: This is the smallest of all the primates. The coat on the head and neck is dark brown and gray, the body is gray and black with a yellowish hue, the legs yellowish, and the tail has delicately shaded black and gray rings. The most distinctive feature is the almond shape of ifs eyes. The ears are completely hidden by the mane. Length of head and body is 5.5 to 6.5 in, tail another 6 to 8 in, and weight two to three oz.

Behavior: It feeds on fruit and insects, but most of its time is spent clinging vertically to trees while feeding on saps and gums by gouging holes in the bark with its specialized incisors. It lives among the branches of trees and is very agile and active. Unfortunately, because of its small size and its swift movements, it is very hard to observe in the wild. When frightened, it clambers up a tree trunk, following a rapid spiral-like route. Its cry is like that of a songbird.

Reproduction: Little is known of its reproductive biology, but the usual number of offspring appears to be one or two.