Cotton Top Tamarin Family Grows Again at Potter Park Zoo

Posted By : The Animal Facts Editorial Team

Date: January 15, 2022 12:01 am

A cotton top tamarin infant clings to its parent at the Potter Park Zoo in Lansing, Michigan

Photo Credit: Potter Park Zoo

Potter Park Zoo have welcomed twin cotton top tamarins to parents Yuri and LG. This is the fourth litter for the pair in four years.

The pair welcomed their first infant in October 2018, followed by another in June of 2019 and a third in November of 2020. With their latest set of twins the cotton top tamarin family at Potter Park Zoo now has ten members.

They have been recommended to breed by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP). This program works to ensure healthy and genetically diverse zoo populations.

Currently 200 cotton top tamarins are housed at 60 AZA accredited zoos within the United States.

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Cotton top tamarins will live in strict hierarchies headed by a monogamous pair who have exclusive breeding rights. Their older offspring will remain with the parents to help raise the next set of infants which gives them valuable experience for when they have their own young.

The young will become independent at around 5 months old.

These primates are among the rarest on Earth with an estimated 6,000 remaining in the wild. Deforestation, farming, logging and oil palm plantations have all affected their populations.

Guests can meet the Potter Park Zoo’s cotton top tamarin family at the Reptile and Small Mammal House.

Learn more about Cotton Top Tamarins here – Cotton Top Tamarin Fact File | The Animal Facts

Learn more about the Potter Park Zoo on their website – Potter Park Zoo