What is your favourite New world primate species ?

Sounds like another tragic loss.

What a shame, I'm sure that cologne is a far less interesting zoo to visit without these.

 

@toto98 Do you have a favourite ? Are the white footed tamarins a favourite of yours by any chance?

 

Thanks for sharing this Dave, very interesting indeed!

Wow! It seems that across the decades and at various times this zoo must have had one of the most complete and diverse collections of Neotropical primates anywhere in the world.

 

I previously posted this link elsewhere on ZooChat but I think it is relevant to this thread too so am also adding it again here.

neotropical primates from Cologne Zoo in Koenig Museum

There is an extremely interesting article about the neotropical primates from Cologne Zoo now in the Koenig Museum in Bonn.

This is especially interesting for those of us who remember when Cologne Zoo had a fine collection of uakaris and saki monkeys, as we probably saw many of the specimens detailed in this article when they were living in the zoo.

 

Thanks for sharing Tim !

Interesting that so many of these individuals ended up as taxidermy specimens when they passed away.

I know that this practice of taxidermy does still happen in several Latin American zoos and that this was a historically norm in zoos across the world, however, out of curiosity how common is it in European zoos today to do this ?

 

Back to the favourites, I found this very difficult! I have seen 12 species in the wild, 2 tamarins, 1 squirrel monkey, 3 capuchins, 3 howlers, 2 spider monkeys and a woolly monkey; of these, based on quality of views etc I’d pick Central American Spider Monkey, particularly those I saw at Xcaret last summer. For those I have seen in captivity, Goeldi’s Monkey, unique and expressive. For those I haven’t seen, Muriqui; other posters here have sold them very successfully, although it is a close victory over uakaris!

 

12 species in the wild ! that is a pretty impressive list !

I'm curious, what tamarin species have you seen in the wild ? and was one of them the Geoffroy's tamarin by any chance?

Very much agree with you on the Goeldi's. I would add that these monkeys seem to be another underrated species in zoos. I have a pet "theory" of sorts that this maybe because they are one of the largest Callitrichid species and so don't have so much of that "cutesy" appeal that many of the smaller species have in buckets. The dark pelt also makes them blend into the shadows / foilage of an enclosure more and probably fails to make them visually stand out to visitors who seem to often pass on by.

For me personally the Goeldie's monkey is a really interesting species though because these primates are really quite an enigma (apart from the whole debate about where they fit amongst the Callitrichids taxonomically). There is a huge knowledge gap in what we know about the ecology and behaviour of the species in the wild in Bolivia and there is a definite need for more field studies to uncover more. Especially relevant regarding its conservation status and requirements.

For example, I read recently that this species has been observed to show a lot more mycophageous feeding behaviour than most other New World primates which I find really fascinating (interestingly the only other species known to consume significant amounts of fungi are the buffy headed and tufted marmosets here in Brazil).

To add to that, I just find them to be a very beautiful species, very shy and they have very large and expressive brown eyes. I remember happily watching the troop kept in the Clore Pavilion at ZSL for quite some time when I was in London last year.

 

@Onychorhynchus coronatus This is very tough question! I don't think I can narrow it down to a single species. As much as I like white-footed tamarins, I grew up seeing soooo many that I never considered them as a rarity. I would still be delighted if I were able to see them in the wild. However my favorite species would probably be:

- Colombian Woolly monkeys (Lagothrix lugens)
- Golden-headed lion tamarin (Leontopithecus chrysomelas)
- Pied tamarins (Saguinus bicolor)
- Bald Uakari (Cacajao calvus)
- Monk Saki (Pithecia monachus)
- Ornate titi (Plecturocebus ornatus)


On a side note, this are the species I have been lucky enough to see in the wild:
Woolly monkey (Lagothrix lagothicha) - Amacayacu N.P
Red howler Monkey (Aloutta seniculus) - Amacayacu N.P, Tayrona N.P, Hato la aurora reserve
Monk Saki (Pithecia monachus) - Amacayacu N.P
Squirrel Monkey (Saimiri scireus) - Amacayacu N.P, Putumayo
Pygmy marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea) - Marasha Nature Reserve (Peru)
Geoffroy’s spider monkey (Ateles geoffroyi) - Tikal (Guatemala)
Guatemalan black howler monkey (Aloutta pigra) - Tikal (Guatemala)
Mantled howler monkey (Alouatta palliata) - Rainforest Discovery Center (Panama)

 

Hard to pick one of the species I've seen in captivity, but I will go for commom marmoset as I adopted an individual of the species (formerly "Sindbad", now "Cali") at the Dutch rescue center AAP.

Of the six species I have seen in the wild, I would pick the black-handed spider monkey as my favorite sightnings.

 

My two Tamarins are Geoffroy’s and Weddell’s Saddle-back. The rest of the list is Black-capped Squirrel Monkey, Large-headed, Shock-headed and Panamanian White-faced Capuchins, Columbian Red, Mantled and Central American Black Howlers, Central American and Black Spider Monkeys and Grey Woolly Monkey.

 

I thought so as it seemed to me that you have spent quite a lot of time in Central America and Colombia.

Do you think you will try to see the cotton top tamarin and the white footed tamarin in the wild one day ? I must admit this is a bit of a personal goal of mine to see these species.

That is an interesting choice, common marmosets are fascinating creatures and that is brilliant to hear that you adopted one at a rescue centre. One thing that really interests me about them is how extremely adaptable and resilient they are when it comes to environmental changes.

That said, I must admit that I have some ambivalent feelings towards them too as they are an invasive species in this part of Brazil (obviously through no fault of their own) and are a driver of extinction of other Callithrix species through hybridisation.

Where did you see the spider monkey in the wild ?

 

I’ve visited Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and Argentina, but not Colombia or yet Brazil. No particular plans for other primates, but will look out for any wherever I end up, hopefully Brazil and Guyana at least.

 

I know its hard to narrow down to a single species as there are just so many that are interesting in different ways and for different reasons.

It seems that the woolly monkeys are firm favourites on zoochat.

That is incredible to hear ! You mean in the sense of seeing large numbers of the white-footed tamarin in zoos / captivity?

Incredible list, thank you for sharing it, there are quite a few species on it that I myself would like to see in the wild and I certainly hope that I will one day.

 

You should definitely consider a trip to both Brazil and Colombia as these are the most biodiverse countries of South America and there are literally so many species that you could tick off your life list over here.

 

Just need coronavirus to be less of a problem!

 

Emperor tamarins, they are the last pride of the german empire (and they are simply so cute)

 

Interesting choice and reason They do indeed have huge Willhelm Kaiser moustaches (but although they can be aggressive in intergroup encounters thankfully they are not Callitrichid millitarists).

 

Yea, that was obviously a joke. But in general am I a big fan of tamarins, with their social structure and obviously cuteness. And in general "beared" animals. My favourite oldworld primate (besides gibbons) for example is the lion-tailed maquace for the exact reason. It is just how I like my animals.