Visitors to Stone Zoo can now see a pair of cotton-top tamarin twins, born on July 3. The new additions made their habitat debut on July 9 and can currently be seen clinging to their mother in the Windows to the Wild Habitat. This is the second set of offspring for 4-year-old Shakira (mother) and 6-year-old Atticus (father). Both mom and the twins are doing well. 

“Our staff has kept a close eye on the tamarin family, and both babies appear to be responsive, alert and doing well as their mother carries them around the habitat. Within a month, we expect the twins to begin exploring the habitat on their own,” said William Robles, Curator at Stone Zoo. “Cotton-top tamarins are a social species, and the entire family takes active roles in helping to raise the new babies.”

Zoo New England participates in the Cotton-Top Tamarin Species Survival Plan (SSP), a cooperative, inter-zoo breeding program managed by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). SSPs help to ensure the survival of selected species in zoos and aquariums, most of which are threatened or endangered, and enhance conservation of these species in the wild. This birth was the result of a recommended breeding between Shakira and Atticus.
 
When born, tamarin babies weigh about 30-40 grams and will grow to be about 500 grams at adult size. These small primates, which are critically endangered in their native tropical forest habitat in northwestern Colombia, are monogamous and groups typically include a dominant mated pair and their offspring. 

Cotton-top tamarins are noted for their long whitish crest of hair stemming from the forehead to the nape and flowing over their shoulders. Tamarin’s diet consists primarily of insects and fruit, and they play an important role as seed dispersers and pollinators in tropical ecosystems. Habitat loss, hunting and illegal wildlife trade are all threats to this species.

Zoo New England is a proud partner of the Wildlife Trafficking Alliance. By collaborating with this coalition of nonprofit organizations, companies and AZA-accredited aquariums and zoos, Franklin Park Zoo and Stone Zoo are raising awareness about the threats posed by wildlife trafficking and how people can be part of the solution.