Super Dad, Fabio the Golden Lion Tamarin Celebrates Father’s Day

Golden lion tamarin father, Fabio has been showing off his fabulous parenting skills with his latest litter of infants ahead of father’s day this weekend. He welcomed the infant with partner, Valentia at ZSL London Zoo on Saturday May 13 2023. Keepers estimate that the tiny infant currently weighs in at a mere 100g.

Since its birth in May the infant has been carried primarily by Valentia but recently Fabio has been stepping up to carry the youngster giving the first time mother a break. The new arrival has been dubbed Kumquat by keepers.

London Zoo zookeeper Jorge Antolin said: “We had suspected Valentina was pregnant as she had been gaining weight recently, so we were delighted to spot a tiny face nestled among mum’s golden fur a few weeks ago. Despite being new parents, Valentina and Fabio have taken to co-parenting with ease and the baby is developing really well, which is brilliant news for both the family and the Endangered species.” 

“Fabio is a wonderful, attentive father – he will carry Kumquat on his back for most of the day, only returning it to mum for nursing,” Jorge explained. “We don’t know the sex of the baby yet, but once it has started venturing away from its parents in a few weeks’ time, our expert vets will be able to confirm if our new arrival is a male or a female.” 

Visitors can find the new family in London Zoo’s temperature-controlled Rainforest Life exhibit, London’s only living rainforest, which they share with two-toed sloths, tamanduas, tortoises and other threatened species. 

Golden lion tamarins are a threatened species with their numbers having fallen to a low of 200 in the 1970s. Conservation zoos and zoological institutes from across the world worked alongside the Brazilian government to restore the species. Currently one third of golden lion tamarins globally are though to have been raised in zoos.

“This Sunday will be Fabio’s first Father’s Day as a dad, but it remains to be seen whether Valentina will allow him a day off from parenting duties,” added Jorge.