Pygmy marmoset

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Conservation status

Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)[3] Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Primates Family: Callitrichidae Cebuella Genus:
Gray, 1866

Species: C. pygmaea Binomial name Cebuella pygmaea

Spix, 1823

Geographic range

Synonyms C. p. pygmaea: nigra Schinz, 1844 leoninus Bates, 1864

The pygmy marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea) is a quadrupedal New World monkey native to the rainforest understories of western Brazil, southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, and northern Bolivia, with an altitudinal range of 200 to 940 m. It is most common in river edge forests, but also can be found in secondary forest and moderately disturbed forest. The pygmy marmoset has been viewed as somewhat different from typical marmosets, most of which are classified in the genera Callithrix and Mico, and thus is accorded its own genus, Cebuella within the family Callitrichidae. Pygmy marmosets live for 1112 years in the wild, but in zoos, they live into their early twenties.

Contents
1 Evolution and taxonomy 2 Physical description 3 Ecology 3.1 Geographic range and habitat 3.2 Diet 4 Behavior 4.1 Communication 4.2 Social systems 4.3 Interspecies interactions 5 References 6 External links

Evolution and taxonomy

There has been debate among primatologists concerning the proper genus in which to place the pygmy marmoset. An examination of the interstitial retinol binding protein nuclear gene (IRBP) in three marmoset species showed that Callithrix as constructed in the 1990s also needed to include C. pygmaea to be monophyletic, and that the times of separation of pygmaea and the argentata and jacchus species groups from one another are less than 5 million years ago, as might be expected for species of the same genus.[4] However, subsequent separation of the argentata and jacchus species groups into different genera (the argentata group having been moved to Mico) justifies maintaining a separate genus for the pygmy marmoset, as Callithrix is no longer paraphyletic.[3] There are two subspecies of the pygmy marmoset:[1][2] Cebuella pygmaea pygmaea Western pygmy marmoset Cebuella pygmaea niveiventris Eastern pygmy marmoset

Physical description

Skeleton

It is one of the smallest primates, and the smallest true monkey, with its body length ranging from 14 to 16 centimetres (5.5 to 6.3 in) (excluding the 15-to-20-centimetre (5.9 to 7.9 in) tail).[5] Males weigh around 140 grams (4.9 oz), and females only 120 grams (4.2 oz). Nicknames for this monkey often refer to its diminutiveness, for example: mono de bolsillo ("pocket monkey"), leoncito ("little lion"). The pygmy marmoset walks on all four limbs.[6]

Ecology
Geographic range and habitat
The pygmy marmoset can be found throughout the northern part of South America including Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador,Boliva, and Peru. It typically lives in the understory of the rain forest often near rivers.[3]

Diet
This monkey has a specialized diet of tree gum. It gnaws holes in the bark of appropriate trees and vines with its specialized dentition to elicit the production of gum. A group's home range is 0.1 to 0.4 ha, and its gum production resources are usually just 1-2 trees. When those become depleted, a group moves to a new home range. Brown-mantled tamarins are generally sympatric with pygmy marmosets and often raid pygmy marmosets' gum holes.[3] Insects and arachnids are also principal food resources of the species.[7] Pygmy marmosets have adapted insect-like tegulae to engage in a high degree of claw-clinging behaviors associated with exudate exploitation. Claw-clinging is primarily used during feeding, but also during exudate foraging.[6]

Behavior
Pygmy marmosets live in groups made up of 1-2 adult males and 1-2 adult females, with a single breeding female and her offspring, ranging from 5-9 members. The breeding female gives birth to twins twice a year, and group members cooperate in carrying them.[3] In contrast to other callitrichines with a co-operative system of infant care, there is no relationship between the number of adult males and the number of infants and offspring. However, there is a significant positive relationship between the number of juveniles and the number of adult and subadult group members.[8] Young marmosets typically remain in the group for two consecutive birth cycles. The pygmy marmoset uses special types of communication to give alerts and warning to its family members. These include chemical, vocal, and physical types of communication. A trill is used to communicate over short distance. A sharp warning whistle and a clicking sound signal danger to their family members. A "J-call" is a series of fast notes repeated by the caller and is used at medium distances.[9] It is believed to serve to promote group cohesion and avoidance of other groups.[10]

Communication
The pygmy marmoset is well known for its intraspecies communication systems including an intricate system of calls. Pygmy marmosets are capable of distinguishing between both the type of contact call from another individual and the vocalizing animal when the trill or J-call is used. This is demonstrated through the voice quality of the vocalizing marmoset and the reaction of the other marmoset to the call. Calls recorded from different individuals in captivity varied significantly in all seven auditory parameters analyzed for each type of call. Behavioral responses to trills were greatest when the caller was the dominant male of the group. Responses to J-calls were greatest when the caller was the monkey's mate or a same-sex monkey from outside the group. Varying

responses to individual callers were only observed when the call was given spontaneously from another animal rather than being played back from a recording, with one exception. That exception was that male monkeys responded differently to playbacks of their own calls versus those of other monkeys, when the call was played back from a familiar location. It is likely that the pygmy marmoset reacts at first to the type of call that is being made and then adjusts its behavior slightly to react to the specific individual that is making the call. This allows the marmoset to react appropriately to all calls but show some variation when the call gives extra information.[10] Environmental factors play a role in communication by affecting the frequency of the signal and how far the signal can travel and still be audible to communicate the desired message. Since the pygmy marmoset is often found in the rain forest, plant life, as well as the atmosphere, add to the normal absorption and scattering of sound. Because low frequency calls are affected less by the disturbances than their high frequency counterparts, they are used for communication across longer distances. The pygmy marmoset uses the trill for short distance communication, J-calls for intermediate distances, and long calls for long distances; these have respectively decreasing frequencies.[9] Pygmy marmosets change the characteristics of their calls when their social environment is changed. Adult marmosets will show modifications in the structure of their calls which mimic that of their group members. In addition to changes of existing calls, novel calls may be heard from marmosets after pairing.[11] Pygmy marmosets have other ways to communicate information about matters such as a female's ovulatory state. New World monkeys do not show genital swelling during ovulation as female Old World monkeys do. Instead, a lack of female aggression towards males can serve as a signal of ovulation. While some have proposed that concealing ovulation is a part of the monogamous relationships of the marmosets, a high rate of both copulation and conception during the ovulatory period suggests that there must be some communication system at play. Since observations have shown an increase in male sexual activity while female sexual activity stayed constant, a change in scent quality is also a possible indicator of ovulation.[12]

Social systems
Infant pygmy marmosets, along with their parents, twin, and other siblings, form cooperative breeding groups. Babbling, or vocalizing, by the infant marmoset is a key part of its relationships with its other family members and is a major part of its development. As the infant develops, the babbling gradually changes to resemble and eventually become adult vocalization. There are many similarities between the development of vocalization in infant pygmy marmosets and speech in infant humans. Vocalizing gives the infant advantages such as increased care and allows the entire family to coordinate their activities without seeing each another.[13] Siblings also participate in infant care. Infant marmosets require the most attention, so having more family members participating in the care decreases the cost for any individual and also teaches parenting skills to the juvenile marmosets. Members of the cooperative breeding group, usually female, may even put off their own reproduction through a temporary cessation of ovulation, in order to care for the offspring of others in the group. The ideal number of caregivers for an infant marmoset has been shown to be around five individuals. Caregivers are responsible for finding food for the infants as well helping the father watch for predators.[14] Pygmy marmosets have litters of twins either once or twice per year.[15] The pygmy marmoset is usually monogamous though there is some variation within the species in terms of breeding systems. Polyandry is also a possibility as male marmosets are responsible for carrying the infant monkeys on their backs. Having a second male to carry the offspring can be beneficial as marmoset litters are often twins and decreases the cost to any particular male. The daily range of the pygmy marmoset, however, is relatively small, which decreases the rate of polyandry. Thus,

monogamy is the norm.[16] Male and female pygmy marmosets show differences in foraging and feeding behavior, although male and female dominance and aggressive behavior varies within the species. Males have less time to search out food sources and forage due to the constraints of their infant caring responsibilities and predator vigilance. Without an infant to carry, female pygmy marmosets have greater freedom to forage, giving them an apparent feeding priority. This priority may serve to compensate mothers for the energetic costs of carrying and lactating for two offspring at a time. However, the fact that feeding priority is also given to females without offspring weakens the argument. Instead, female feeding priority may have evolved through sexual selection. Females may chose mates who invest more time in infant care and predator vigilance. Such males have less time to look for food, allowing the female feeding priority.[17]

Interspecies interactions
Interaction between humans and the pygmy marmoset is associated with a number of behavioral changes in the animal including social play and vocalization, both of which are important to communication between animals in the species. Particularly in areas of heavy tourism, pygmy marmosets have a tendency to be less noisy, less aggressive, and less playful with other individuals. They are also pushed into higher strata of the rainforest than they would normally prefer. Tourism in areas native to the pygmy marmoset is also correlated with increased capture of the animal. Capture causes even more behavioral variations, including a decrease in both the number and the sound level of vocalizations.[18]