There are fewer than 6,000 cotton-top tamarins left in the wild, and two of the world's most endangered primates are now being housed at the Riverbanks Conservation Outpost.
Pepita, a 6-month-old female cotton-top tamarin, was rescued from an illegal pet trade operation.
"She was being raised with the intention of being a pet, and that does not work well for nonhuman primates," says Dr. Martha Weber,vicepresident of animal care at Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia. "When she arrived here at two months old, she was malnourished, and we had to nurse her back to health."
To support Pepita's recovery, Riverbanks Zoo has paired her with Caqueta, a 12-year-old female tamarin from Buttonwood Park Zoo in New Bedford, Mass. Caqueta was chosen for her experience in raising offspring.
According to the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, cotton-top tamarins are a social species that participate in social grooming and often live in groups of two to ten.
Cotton-top tamarins are native to the tropical and semi-dry forests of Colombia's northwest region. Ryan Jones, the gorilla and small mammal supervisor at Riverbanks, says appropriate adjustments to habitat design will be incorporated.
"Each habitat is unique and tailored to the species and individuals that live there,” he says. “We continually adjust and adapt those spaces throughout their lives."