Marwell Zoo announce birth of endangered cotton-top tamarin

Marwell Zoo, near Colden Common, is launching a competition to name the tiny monkey with voters given the option of three names from The Addams Family.

This follows the family tradition as cotton-top tamarin older siblings are called Pugsley and Pubert. The choice of names in the competition are Fester, Lurch and Gomez.

The birth of the endangered monkey comes as the zoo looks to mark Endangered Species Day and celebrate their commitment to these once thriving species.

The Cotton-top Tamarin is an endangered species (Image: PA)Animal team leader for primates and small mammals, Amy Deny, said that parents Mico and Gurt would take turns carrying the new arrival.

Amy said that cotton-top tamarins cling to the fur on their parents backs and tummy before becoming fully independent at about five months old.

She continued: “Cotton-top tamarins are native to Colombia and are critically endangered, with only around 2,000 individuals left in the wild.

“They are threatened in the wild by residential and agricultural development and the pet trade. This is a really exciting time for our troop at Marwell as this is the second time our pair have reproduced.”

The baby Cotton-top Tamarin clings to its mother's fur (Image: PA)Mico and Gurt play an important role in ensuring a healthy population of tamarins exist in human care at Marwell and help to conserve the species.

The team leader continued: “Last year was quite overwhelming for the first-time parents, learning to look after their infants and being the sole care providers. However, this time around they have the help of juveniles Pugsley and Pubert.

“Cotton-top tamarins co-operatively rear their offspring, meaning all members of the troop take it in turns to carry the babies. This gives the parents an important chance to rest.

“While dad Mico does most of the hard work, older brother Pugsley has also started sharing the workload and taking the baby outside with him while playing and foraging for food.

“The babies have an incredible grip, and cling onto the carrier while leaping around the habitat, which although a little nerve-wracking is great fun to watch.”