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Golden lion marmoset, golden lion tamarin - LEONTOPITHECUS ROSALIA

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." "Tamarin" comes from the Galibi word for the monkey.

Location: The coastal mountains southwest of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, South America.

Habitat: Arboreal. Lowland tropical forests.

Description: The distinctive feature of this species is the thick lion-like mane which conceals its ears. The dense, bristly coat is of an almost uniformly golden color. The face is hairless. The hands and feet are very long, and the second, third, and fourth digits are joined by skin which extends to the middle joint. All digits bear clawlike nails except the big toe, which has a flat nail. Length of head and body up to 20 in, tail 9 to 15 in, weight (in captivity) 1.3 to 1.8 lbs.

Behavior: This marmoset is virtually omnivorous. It eats fruit, insects, lizards, and even small birds. It lives in small groups in the tops of trees, moving nimbly through the branches in search of food, and it rests in tree hollows.

Reproduction: Gestation lasts about 135 days. The female bears one or two young, but usually twins, which are then looked after by the father when the mother nurses them. They start to be self-sufficient at about three months of age.

Note: The three distinct subspecies of lion marmoset are all threatened with extinction because of changes wrought by human encroachment and colonization.