The cotton-top tamarin (Saguinus oedipus)
Cotton-top tamarin видео
The cotton-top tamarin (Saguinus oedipus) is a species of platyrrhine primate in the family Callitrichidae.
Saguinus oedipus is a small New World monkey weighing less than 0.5 kg (1.1 lb). This New World monkey can live up to 24 years, but most of them die by 13 years. One of the smallest primates, the cotton-top tamarin is easily recognized by the long, white sagittal crest extending from its forehead to its shoulders. The species is found in tropical forest edges and secondary forests in northwestern Colombia, where it is arboreal and diurnal. Its diet includes insects and plant exudates, and it is an important seed disperser in the tropical ecosystem.
The cotton-top tamarin displays a wide variety of social behaviors. In particular, groups form a clear dominance hierarchy where only dominant pairs breed. The female normally gives birth to twins and uses pheromones to prevent other females in the group from breeding. These tamarins have been extensively studied for their high level of cooperative care, as well as altruistic and spiteful behaviors. Communication between cotton-top tamarins is sophisticated and shows evidence of grammatical structure, a language feature that must be acquired.
Up to 40,000 cotton-top tamarins are thought to have been caught and exported for use in biomedical research before 1976, when CITES gave them the highest level of protection and all international commercial trade was prohibited. Now, the species is at risk due to large-scale habitat destruction, as the lowland forest in northwestern Colombia where the cotton-top tamarin is found has been reduced to 5% of its previous area. It is currently classified as critically endangered and is one of the rarest primates in the world, with only 6,000 individuals left in the wild.
Taxonomy and naming
Saguinus oedipus has the common names "cotton-top tamarin" and "cotton-headed tamarin" in English. Its name comes from the white hair that spans its head and flows down past the neck. In Spanish, it is commonly called bichichi, tití pielroja, "tití blanco, tití cabeza blanca, or tití leoncito. In German-speaking areas, the cotton-top tamarin is commonly known as Lisztaffe (literally "Liszt monkey") due to the resemblance of its crest to the hairstyle of Hungarian composer and piano virtuoso Franz Liszt.
Social behaviour
Juveniles (especially males) may remain in the family group as helpers. This is beneficial for the group as a whole, as the "extra" males help to raise the cubs and the cubs survive better. The older animals that remain in the family group gain experience in rearing pups. This experience with younger siblings is very important for young Saguinus oedipus, as an inexperienced female will not be able to fully raise her young.
Nutrition
Saguinus oedipus feeds on fruits, flowers and plant nectar, but also eats frogs, snakes, lizards, spiders, insects, chicks and bird eggs.
Reproduction
Saguinus oedipus live in large family groups. Pregnancy lasts 140 days and females usually give birth to twins. On the third day of life they open their eyes, on the twentieth day they stop riding on the backs of adults and start moving on their own, on the fifth week they start eating adult food and on the twenty-fifth week they are fully independent. Surprisingly, the females only provide milk, the rest of the time the young are carried by the male.
