Primates

            Primate Observation: Golden Lion Tamarin.
             Deep in the Amazon Jungle lives creatures, small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, that spend their days high up in the rain forests, and nights in hollow tree trunks. These beautiful "simian-like cats similar to small lions", are recognizably called golden lion tamarins (Peterson 15). Similar to the golden lion tamarins in the jungle, lives a pair of tamarins at the Sequoia Park Zoo, who after much time observing, spends much of its time doing similar activities to those not in captivity. These activities that I chose to observe consisted of eating, communicating amongst others, sleeping, grooming and cleaning, and playing alone or together. .
             The male golden lion tamerion (Leontopithecus rosalia rosalis) that I steadily observed for the past few weeks was born on March 19, 1987, which makes him almost thirteen. Life expectancy (in captivity) is about 8 years for animals that survive past the infant stage("lion haired tamarin"). The zoo has named him Vern. I could identify Vern from his mate because he is a bit larger than his female partner, and has more hair on his bottom end and tail. The cage was a room with glass windows, that had been created to imitate a nicely vegetated jungle. .
             Vern's diet consists of bananas, apples, oranges, eggs, and the occasional ant that was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Vern likes to climb down from the branches to pick up his food, and scurry back up to the top of the tangling branches with food in mouth to eat. He also didn't eat a lot at one time. He chose to snack little amounts of food at all hours. Similarly, tamarins in the wild eat the same omnivorous diet. In the wild, golden lion tamarins eat fruits and insects and the occasional tree frog and lizard; feeding as they move (Peterson 17). Sharing is both passive (i.e. tolerated stealing) and active, with the food actually offered to another animal (GTL .