The amount of gum recovered is usually quite small and marmosets only spend about two minutes at any one hole. At the Zoo they are fed canned marmoset diet, bananas, grapes, apples, string beans, fruit and mealworms. They are often given gum for enrichment purposes as well.
Geoffroy's marmosets live in large social groups that can include as many as 20 individuals more commonly groups of eight to 10 in which fathers, as well as other group members, provide extensive care for the young. Adult offspring may remain in the group and help care for their younger siblings. This species is sexually monogamous and the males coil their tails as a sexual display before copulation.
The gestation period is around 4. Females have multiple births, usually twins. The twins are not identical, but they do share the same placenta with extensive mixing of blood of the two fetuses—a phenomenon known as chimerism. The primary threat to Geoffroy's marmosets is habitat loss. There has been widespread destruction of the Atlantic forest, resulting in a patchy distribution, though population numbers are still abundant.
Like many other small primates, they are occasionally collected for the pet trade. Skip to main content. Entry passes are required for all guests, including infants. All visitors ages 2 and older are required to wear a mask in all indoor spaces at the Zoo, regardless of their vaccination status. Fully vaccinated visitors do not need to wear a mask in outdoor areas. A wooden cap sealed the open end of the last reservoir and the whole was secured with wingnuts and washers.
The reservoirs were filled with gum arabic and the marmosets had to gouge holes to release the gum. Hanging whole fruits, such as bananas or oranges, in the cage, providing that initially a small piece of rind is stripped off, will enable the marmosets to feed naturally. Another simple device, available from most pet shops for garden birds, is the suspended feeder, which contains peanuts or raisins and can only be reached by hanging from a perch or the ceiling.
Such a device can easily be constructed from a hollowed out log with holes slightly larger than a peanut drilled in it. In the Aberystwyth marmoset colony we found that marmosets liked almost empty yoghurt cartons, after eating the contents they would run round the cage with the carton on their heads! Where it is necessary for a specific reason to keep a marmoset alone in a cage, training apparatus can prove useful.
Co-ordination can be put to the test by placing a moving belt with pieces of apple on it immediately in front of the cage. A variable speed motor will provide different requirements of skill on the part of the monkey. In most cases, however, there will be no need to resort to such elaborate technology to provide environmental enrichment for captive marmosets.
Marmosets are among the easiest of primates to provide with environmental enrichment. Like other higher primates, they need four conditions:. Companionship Adequate space with incorporated complexity Some unpredictability in the environment Ways in which they can manipulate or control their environment.
To provide these forms of environmental enrichment for marmosets is practicable and inexpensive. Because of their greater spatial requirements it is more difficult and costly to provide a good laboratory environment for larger species such as cynomolgus, rhesus monkeys or baboons.
Where they are suitable, therefore, marmosets should be used in the laboratory in preference to larger species of monkey. Chamove, A. Environmental enrichment: a review. Animal Technology, Chamove, S. Deep woodchip litter: Hygiene, feeding and behavioural enhancement in eight primate species.
McGrew, W. An artificial "gum tree" for marmosets Callithrix j. Zoo Biology, 5: Plant, M. Observations on marmoset breeding at Fisons. Poole, T. Normal and abnormal behaviour in captive primates. Primate Report, Reproduction, infant survival and productivity of a colony of common marmosets Callithrix jacchus jacchus.
Laboratory Animals, Scott, L. Training non-human primates—meeting their behavioural needs. In Animal training.
Symposium proceedings. Shepherdson, D. Environmental Enrichment Report 2. Reproduced with permission of the Institute of Animal Technology. Published in Animal Technology Vol. Environmental Enrichment for Marmosets.
The need for companions Few marmosets are kept singly in cages because they soon lose condition and, if not socially housed, often die. The need for space and complexity An important point must be made, namely, that usable space from the standpoint of the marmoset, is not synonymous with cage size. The need for an element of unpredictability in the environment One of the problems of confinement is the sameness and predictability of the enclosed environment.
A simple mealworm dispenser constructed from clear 5 cm diameter acrylic pipe 50 cm in length. There are more pairs of eyes to spot predators, and everyone helps take care of the little ones. For added safety, the troop spends the night among thick vines or in a tree hole. A mother pygmy marmoset's gestation period is about 4.
She almost always has two babies, but in zoos, pygmy marmosets have had three or even four babies in one litter. Each newborn is about the size of a human thumb! The father helps deliver the babies, cleans them up, and then takes over their care. He carries the newborns piggyback style for their first two weeks, bringing them back to the mother to nurse. Older siblings may help, too. When they are a bit older, the babies hide while the rest of their family looks for food until they are strong enough to travel with the group.
Usually the young marmosets are weaned and can follow the troop by three months of age. It takes them about two years to grow as large as the adults. They may leave the troop at this point to start a family of their own, or they may stay to help raise the newest babies.
Pygmy marmosets communicate with each other by chattering and trilling in high-pitched voices. Certain squeaks and calls express danger or other urgent monkey messages.
They also make faces to express emotions like contentment, surprise, or fear by moving their lips, eyelids, ears, and the hair around their face. We humans do that, too! These mini monkeys groom one another, and that helps establish social bond. They are fussy about keeping their fur in good shape. Pygmy marmoset families have territories marked by scent.
This signals neighboring troops to leave each other alone. If the current rate of habitat destruction can be slowed, these tiny monkeys will have a big chance at long-term survival in their forest home. Their largest threat is the pet trade, due to their tiny size, cuddly appearance, and appealing face.
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