Golden Lion Tamarin - Behaviour and Ecology

Behaviour and Ecology

The Golden lion tamarin is active for a maximum of 12 hours daily. It uses different sleeping dens each day. By frequently moving their sleeping nests around, groups minimize the scent left behind, reducing the likelihood of predators finding them. The first activities of the day are traveling and feeding on fruits. As the afternoon nears, tamarins focus more on insects. By late afternoon, they move to their night dens. Tamarin groups use hollow tree cavities, dense vines or epiphytes as sleeping sites. Sites that are between 11 and 15 m (36 and 49 ft) off the ground are preferred. The golden lion tamarin tends to be active earlier and retire later in the warmer, wetter times of the years as the days are longer. During drier times, it forages for insects longer as they become more scarce.

The golden lion tamarin has a diverse, omnivorous diet consisting of fruits, flowers, nectar, bird eggs, insects and small vertebrates. They rely on microhabitats for foraging and other daily activities and tamarins will use bromeliads, palm crowns, palm leaf sheaths, woody crevices, lianas, vine tangles, tree bark, rotten logs, and leaf litters. The golden lion tamarin uses its fingers to extract prey from crevices, under leaves, and in dense growth; a behavior known as micromanipulation. It is made possible by elongated hands and fingers. Insects make up to 10–15% of its diet. Much of the rest is made of small, sweet, pulpy fruits. During the rainy season, golden lion tamarin mainly eat fruit, however during drier times, it must eat more of other foods like nectar and gums. Small vertebrates are also consumed more at these times as insects become less abundant.