Pygmy marmosets are a new world primate. That means that they live in South America (although they live in Southeast Asia, and Africa as well). Newborn babies weigh only .5 oz. and in two years when adults, they weigh 3 oz. Pygmy Marmosets belong to the callitrichid species. They evolved as a result of phyletic dwarfism from a larger callitrichid species. Since that is so rare, it’s amazing that it happened. These small marmosets eat tree gum and sap; without it they wouldn’t be able to survive. One domanant female breeds. She breeds every 5-7 months. Pygmys gaurd a territory of less than an acre, and live in small groups. Their major threat is habitat destruction.The hair on a pygmy marmoset's head is longer than the hair on the body. The body hair is like cat hair, but about an inch thick.

      When kept in captivity, pygmy marmosets are fed and kept so that it seems as much like their natural habitat as possible. The pygmies in captivity sleep and dwell in boxes that are heated in the winter. Gum trees are also created, with gum inside that has calcium in them. Calcium is the mineral that wild pygmies get from the gum in trees.

      Pygmy marmosets live in the rainforest. Not only does the rainforest contain marmosets, but it also contains many animals including their cousins, the Tamarins. In fact, half the rainforest is animals, which means that many species live there. Just speaking of butterflies, there are 150 species! (And that's just in four square miles!) About every second, two acres of rainforest are being destroyed. To help save the rainforests, click on links and "SaveRainforest.net" and you can save 45 acres of the rainforest. Please check out our other webpages too.

Picture courtesy of the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation (RSCF).

Click here to read an interview with an RSCF curator.

 

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