When a predator or a human comes near, pygmy marmosets can produce an ultrasonic cry, inaudible to most predators, to express hostility or warn others.

In French, marmoset means grotesque figure.
 

Pygmy Marmoset

Cebuella pygmaea

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION

The pygmy marmoset, the world’s smallest true monkey, is about 4-7 inches long, and its tail can reach 6-9 inches in length. It has a tawny coat and a ringed tail. Its claws are specially adapted for climbing trees, a trait unique to pygmy marmosets. Their camouflaged coloration makes them extremely difficult to see in the trees.

HABITAT

They are found in the rainforest areas of western Brazil, Bolivia, southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador and eastern Peru.

DIET IN THE WILD

Much of their diet comes from tapping trees for sap. They also eat fruit, leaves, insects, and sometimes small reptiles. Up to one-third of their waking hours are spent on foraging for food, gouging tree bark so they can reach the gummy juice underneath. The pygmy marmoset has special teeth for gouging holes in trees.

BEHAVIOR

Pygmy marmosets are arboreal, spending most of their time in the trees and little to no time on the ground, and are diurnal, rather than nocturnal, meaning they are active during the day. Like many species of marmosets, they socialize in groups. Pygmy marmosets are docile and gentle. Mutual grooming is often seen between members of a group as part of their social bonding. Pygmy marmosets are very territorial, marking and defending spaces up to 1 acre. Defense of territory involves calls, displays, and sometimes chasing away others. They run on all fours, jumping, and occasionally leaping among trees and shrubs.

STATUS IN THE WILD / CONSERVATION EFFORTS

Pygmy marmosets are a vulnerable species. Efforts are underway to prevent deforestation by getting the local people involved in the marmosets conservation.

LIFESPAN

Typically, pygmy marmosets can live to be 11-16 years old.