A team of Brazilian conservationists led by Diogo Lagroteria has published new information on one of the threats to the population of pied tamarins around Manaus in Amazonia. The red-handed tamarin, a widespread species, is moving into the area that used to be home only to pied tamarins, and may be pushing pied tamarins closer to extinction.

Pied tamarin (left; photo: Diogo Lagroteria) and red-handed tamarin (right; photo Alexander Oehrle D-75172 Pforzheim, used under Creative Commons license https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/s.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/)

The study compared the type of habitat needed by the two species and found that much of the pied tamarin’s home was highly suitable for red-handed tamarins. This may mean that red-handed tamarins will continue to move into the pied tamarin’s range and compete for resources, putting even more pressure on the pieds, which are already confined to a very small area in and around Manaus.

The team’s findings will provide valuable new information for the ongoing National Action Plan for the conservation of pied tamarins, and support the management and conservation efforts for the species.

Tamarin Trust’s Dom Wormell is co-leading a workshop on the care of rescued pied tamarins in Manaus in November this year. He will be working with Diogo and other Brazilian, European and American experts to ensure that tamarins receive the best possible care while in rescue centres, so that they can either be re-released back into the wild, or, if that isn’t possible, become part of a breeding population to ensure the pied tamarin’s survival into the future. The workshop is being funded by Toledo Zoo in the US, and Tamarin Trust.

The article can be accessed and downloaded in full at the link below:

http://journal.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fcosc.2024.1426488/full?&utm_source=Email_to_authors_&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=T1_11.5e1_author&utm_campaign=Email_publication&field=&journalName=Frontiers_in_Conservation_Science&id=1426488