Red-handed Tamarin Factfile
Scientific
Name : Sanguinus m. midas
World Distribution
Red-handed
tamarins are from northern Brazil, Guyana, French Guyana and Surinam.
Habitat
They live
in the trees of tropical rainforests, running and leaping through the branches.
At night they curl up in clumps of leaves or tree holes.
Feeding
Fruit, tender
plants, nectar, insects, spiders, frogs and lizards are all eaten by red-handed
tamarins. They are also quite partial to tree gum.
Predators
Cats, birds
of prey and snakes are the main predators of red-handed tamarins. The quick
ahile movements of the tamarins make them hard to catch!
Breeding
In a typical
tamarin group of six, only one of the females will breed. She usually gives
birth to twins twice a year, which are handed over to their father to be cared
for. All members of the group, especially the other males, will help him!
The young
can feed themselves at aabout three months old, but usually stay with the
family. Unless their mother dies, they must form a new group if they want
to breed.
Other interesting
facts
-
Tamarins are one of
the smallest types of monkey: the red-handed tamarin stands only 28 cm tall.
-
Unlike most other monkeys,
the red-handed tamarin has claws, not nails. Thes enaable it to grip branches
and are also useful grooming tools - tamarins keep each other beautifully
clean and combed!
(The big toe, however, has a nail)
-
Tamarins keep in contact
with each other by means of high pitched squeaks which sound very much like
bird calls.
-
They use scents from
special scent glands on their rear ends to let other tamarins where they
have been.
-
They are never aggressive
to other members of their group, but will defend their territory from other
groups.
-
The tail is not prehensile
(gripping) like that of the spider monkey. It is used for balance.
-
The "red"
hands and feet may help to camouflage the tamarin in the dappled light of
the tree branches. The colour contrast "breaks up" the outline
of the animal's shape.
Facts
and Figures
|
Name
|
red-handed
tamarin |
Type
of animal
|
mammal |
Where
found
|
South
America |
Habitat
|
tropical
rainforest |
Diet
|
omnivorous |
Average
length
|
25
cm |
Average
weight
|
0.5
kg |
Average
number of young per year
|
2 |
Gestation
|
140
days |
Maximum
lifespan
|
10
years |
|
|
