Trivia question for Aug-04-2011

Carter thinks these guys look like they belong in a Star Wars episode so he decided to study up on them and make them todays trivia.  These guys are small, highly active tree-dwelling primates that forage at most levels of the forest.  They are easily identified by their brilliant white shock of long hair on its head.

It is considered one of the bare-faced of its species because of the lack of facial hair. Its lower canine teeth are longer than its incisors, so it seems as if it has small tusks. It is about the size of a squirrel and weighs 10-18 ounces. The males are only slightly larger than females. They are among the smallest of the primates. Head body length of this species is 17 cm and tail length is 25 cm. Forelimbs are shorter than the hind limbs. The thumb is not opposable and the tail is not prehensile. All the finger and toe nails are like claws except for the big toe which has a flat nail.

So here are Carter’s questions:  Tell us what this primate is and how they display dominance and aggression?  Also, these guys are considered critically endangered, having lost more than three-quarters of its original habitat to deforestation. The wild population is estimated at about 6000, with 2000 adults. Tell us where on earth these guys can still be found in the wild?

Good Luck 😉

Answer:

Congratulations to Ty from Atlanta GA for being the first with the correct answers.  The furry primate we featured is the Cotton-Top Tamarin.  The cottontop tamarin, also known as the Pinché tamarin, is a small New World monkey weighing less than 1-lb. It is found in tropical forest edges and secondary forests in northwestern Colombia.

The cotton-top tamarin displays dominance and aggression with various facial expressions and by standing on its hind-legs.  The cotton-top tamarin vocalizes with birdlike whistles, soft chirping sounds, high-pitched trilling, and staccato calls. Researchers say its repertoire of 38 distinct sounds is unusually sophisticated, conforming to grammatical rules and able to express curiosity, fear, dismay, playfulness, warnings, joy, and calls to young. It has loud territorial songs as well as songs when it is excited. It moves its tongue across the lips. This may be a recognition signal, or could be used to communicate anger or curiosity. A “threat face” consists of lowering the forehead until it forms a bulge which almost covers the eyes; the lips are pushed forward and the head and neck crests are erected. This apparently is sufficient since no other body language is used.

Here is more on these hairy little guys: Cotton-Top Tamarin

Thanks for playing along 😉