Weirdest Endangered Animals

         Pygmy Marmoset

The pygray marmoset

(Cebuella pygmaea; is a smal

New Worid monkey native

to rainforests of the western

Amazon Basin

in South America.

It is notable for being the smallest

monkey and one of the smallest

primates in the world at just over

100 grams. It is generally found in

evergreen and river edge forests

and is a gum-feeding specialist.

There are few morphological

differences between these subspe-

cies, as they may only differ slightly

in color, and they are only sepa-

rated by geographical barriers,

including large rivers in Central and South America.

The evolution of this species

diverged in terms of body-mass

from typical primates, with a high

rate of body-mass reduction. This

involves large decreases in

pre-natal and post-natal growth

rates, furthering the thought that

pro-genesis played a role in the 

evolution of this animals.

The pygmy marmoset is one of the world's

smallest primates, and

is the smallest true monkey, with a

head-body length ranging from 117 to 152 millimetres and a tail of 172 to 229

millimetres. The aver-

age adult body weight

is just over 100 grams

with the only sexual

dimorphism of females

being a little heavier.

The fur colour is a

mixture of brownish-

gold, grey, and black

on its back and head

and yellow, orange, and

tawny on its underparts.

Its tail has black rings and

its face has flecks of white

on its cheeks and a white

vertical line between its eyes.

It has many adaptations for

arboreal living including the

ability to rotate its head 180

degrees and sharp claw-like nails

used to cling to branches and trees.

lts dental morphology is adapted to feeding on gum, with specialised

incisors that are used to gouge

trees and stimulate sap flow.

This monkey has a specialized

diet of tree gum. lt gnaws holes in

the bark of appropriate trees and

vines with its specialized dentition

to elicit the production of gum.

When the sap puddles up in the

hole, it laps it up with its tongue.

It also lies in wait for insects,

especially butterflies, which are

attracted to the sap holes. It

supplements its diet with nectar

and fruit.

   

       A pygmy marmoset group,

ranging from two to nine members. contains one or two adult males and one or two females including a single breeding female and her offspring. Interbirth interval ranges from 149-746 days. In

contrast to other callitrichines, there is no relationship between the number of adult males and the number of infants and offspring.However, there is a significant positive relationship between the number of juveniles and the

number of adult and subadult group members. Young marmosets

typically remain in the group for two consecutive birth cycles. The

pygmy marmoset uses special

types of communication to give

alerts and warning to its family

members.

    The pygmy marmoset, due to its

extensive population size, is not

thought to be at risk of large

population declines. As a result, it is listed as a species of Least

Concern by the International Union

for Conservation of Nature.