Introduction
The family of Callitrichidae houses the Saguinus imperator, or the Emperor Tamarin. This species can be further classified into two sub-species: Sanguinus imperator subgrisescens and Sagninus imperator imperator. They are included in the group of New World Monkeys. Emperor tamarins are known for their long white mustaches; in fact, they were named after the Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany because he shared this distinct facial accessory (“Emeror tamarin fact file”). The Emperor tamarins can be found in the South-western Amazon in Brazil, Peru, and Bolivia (“IUCN Red List”). They typically live in tropical climates and in open-woodlands (“Mac Como Zoo”). They live in the trees, but below 95 feet high (“Animal Diversity Web”). Because …show more content…
The indoor facility that housed the tamarins did not open until 10:00 AM so these animals were in the dark and had just woken up when I arrived to observe. This leads me to believe that it was reasonable that a common behavior was resting for these primates. Even in their socialization they were mostly resting, cuddled together with their eyes closed. Similar to what I would have thought when coming into this project, these primates were very social. As previously noted, Emperor tamarins have a reputation for being particularly friendly and affectionate and that was shown in my observation. They were constantly near each other and when apart were aware of the other’s location and behavior. I was, however, surprised that socializing was not the most common behavior exhibited. Social interaction is very important for primates’ fitness (McFarland, Richard) and I was not exposed to an overwhelming amount of socializing with these two primates. This, I believe, is a consequence of living in captivity. Since they usually live in groups of 2-8, there would need to be more time dedicated to socialization in the wild in order to develop more than just one relationship. Furthermore, where mating is concerned the tamarins in this enclosure only have one option. There is no need to establish a strong relationship in order to make the female be more inclined to choose this male; she has no other choice. Another activity that was affected by observing animals in captivity was that there was no need to look out for predators. These tamarins did not need to spend any of their time taking turns watching out for predators. This allowed them the time for resting and socializing. Also, the fact that food was given to them in their enclosure negated any need for them to hunt or look for food. This is most likely a reason why the percentage of feeding behaviors was so low. Though there are some differences in how these
The family of Callitrichidae houses the Saguinus imperator, or the Emperor Tamarin. This species can be further classified into two sub-species: Sanguinus imperator subgrisescens and Sagninus imperator imperator. They are included in the group of New World Monkeys. Emperor tamarins are known for their long white mustaches; in fact, they were named after the Emperor Wilhelm II of Germany because he shared this distinct facial accessory (“Emeror tamarin fact file”). The Emperor tamarins can be found in the South-western Amazon in Brazil, Peru, and Bolivia (“IUCN Red List”). They typically live in tropical climates and in open-woodlands (“Mac Como Zoo”). They live in the trees, but below 95 feet high (“Animal Diversity Web”). Because …show more content…
The indoor facility that housed the tamarins did not open until 10:00 AM so these animals were in the dark and had just woken up when I arrived to observe. This leads me to believe that it was reasonable that a common behavior was resting for these primates. Even in their socialization they were mostly resting, cuddled together with their eyes closed. Similar to what I would have thought when coming into this project, these primates were very social. As previously noted, Emperor tamarins have a reputation for being particularly friendly and affectionate and that was shown in my observation. They were constantly near each other and when apart were aware of the other’s location and behavior. I was, however, surprised that socializing was not the most common behavior exhibited. Social interaction is very important for primates’ fitness (McFarland, Richard) and I was not exposed to an overwhelming amount of socializing with these two primates. This, I believe, is a consequence of living in captivity. Since they usually live in groups of 2-8, there would need to be more time dedicated to socialization in the wild in order to develop more than just one relationship. Furthermore, where mating is concerned the tamarins in this enclosure only have one option. There is no need to establish a strong relationship in order to make the female be more inclined to choose this male; she has no other choice. Another activity that was affected by observing animals in captivity was that there was no need to look out for predators. These tamarins did not need to spend any of their time taking turns watching out for predators. This allowed them the time for resting and socializing. Also, the fact that food was given to them in their enclosure negated any need for them to hunt or look for food. This is most likely a reason why the percentage of feeding behaviors was so low. Though there are some differences in how these