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Table of Contents Introduction 3 Classification 4 Description 5 Colouring and hair 5 Size 5 Claws 6 Teeth 6 Habitat 7 Dynamics 8 Impact of Deforestation 10 What is Deforestation? 10 Impact of Deforestation on Marmosets 10 Conclusion 11 Page 1 of 13 Marmose ts

Transcript of Introduction - primarysite-prod-sorted.s3.amazonaws.com€¦  · Web viewTheir Subphylum is...

Page 1: Introduction - primarysite-prod-sorted.s3.amazonaws.com€¦  · Web viewTheir Subphylum is Vertebrata, which comes from the word for the bones that make up the spine ... Their Order

Table of ContentsIntroduction 3

Classification 4

Description 5Colouring and hair 5Size 5Claws 6Teeth 6

Habitat 7

Dynamics 8

Impact of Deforestation 10What is Deforestation? 10Impact of Deforestation on Marmosets 10

Conclusion 11

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Marmosets

Page 2: Introduction - primarysite-prod-sorted.s3.amazonaws.com€¦  · Web viewTheir Subphylum is Vertebrata, which comes from the word for the bones that make up the spine ... Their Order

Introduction

Hello, my name is Robyn Young and I’m going to tell you all about Marmosets and their lives in the rainforests on Earth.

I chose this animal because it is extremely cute and has some interesting facts about it, including when... sorry, no spoiler alerts! Keep reading to find out interesting facts including where their habitat is, what they do, their diet and other things.

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Marmosets

Page 3: Introduction - primarysite-prod-sorted.s3.amazonaws.com€¦  · Web viewTheir Subphylum is Vertebrata, which comes from the word for the bones that make up the spine ... Their Order

Classification

Marmosets come under the Animalia Kingdom classification, which means they are animals. Their Phylum is Chordata, which means they have a spinal column in their backs. Their Subphylum is Vertebrata, which comes from the word for the bones that make up the spine.

Marmosets fall under the Class of Mammalia. We commonly call this mammal, which means vertebrate animals that produce milk to feed their young have fur or hair and three middle ear bones.

Their Order is Primates. Primates began 85-55 million years ago from terrestrial mammals, their body then started to change to make them more suited to living in the trees of the tropical rainforest.

Next in the classification is their Suborder which is Haplorhini. The name is sometimes spelled Haplorrhini with two r’s.

The classification for Infraorder is Simiiformes.

Following that, we have the Family classification, Callitrichidae. The Callitrichidae are a family of New World monkeys, including marmosets, tamarins and lion tamarins.

Genus is next. The marmosets I am looking at in this project fall under the Mico Genus, which are Amazonian. There are 14 different species of Amazonian marmosets.

Fun fact! A group of pygmy marmosets is called a troop.

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Marmosets

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Description

Colouring and hairThey have long tails that are striped and lots of marmosets have different fur colour- some are golden, grey, light brown and dark brown and a mix of these colours. There are some more colours, but these are the most common colours to be found on a marmoset. Scientists have shown that marmosets mostly have brown or hazel eyes.

Marmosets’ hair is very silky and soft. Lots of them have tufts of hair or manes on either side of their faces, which are only slightly furred or completely naked.

SizeMost marmosets are about 20cm long, but the Pygmy marmoset is the smallest monkey in the world and their maximum length is 14cm long. They are only 120g and their maximum length is 14cm. A Pygmy marmoset can fit into a regular human’s hand. A fully grown adult weighs less than a stick of butter. Marmosets’ tails are longer than their bodies. Unlike other monkeys in the trees, marmosets can’t swing from tree to tree using their tails. They behave more like squirrels and use their tail to help them balance.

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Marmosets

Page 5: Introduction - primarysite-prod-sorted.s3.amazonaws.com€¦  · Web viewTheir Subphylum is Vertebrata, which comes from the word for the bones that make up the spine ... Their Order

Claws A fact that makes them different to other monkeys is that they have claws, while other monkeys have nails. Marmosets have claws on every single digit except for the big toe. These claws, along with their brain layout, are very primitive features, therefore it’s expected that they are one of the earliest types of monkeys in existence. Their hands and feet resemble those of squirrels.

TeethThey have special kinds of teeth that allow them to chew small holes in tree bark to reach the gum and sap inside.

FUN FACT! Marmosets can rotate their heads 180 degrees!

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Marmosets

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Habitat

Marmosets are from South America and can be found in Brazil, Columbia, Ecuador and Peru, living in small groups of 5-10 monkeys.

They live in the Understory Rainforest layer. The Understory layer is a tangle of shrubs, young trees, saplings, palms and vines. It is hot and damp there and the air is very still. This layer is quite dark. Plants found there see very little sunlight compared to those in the canopy. Since there is not much light, plants do not grow as much as they do in the canopy so only certain animals that live there can survive. Marmosets are mostly found in areas close to rivers. This is because there is slightly more food there. Marmosets originally lived on the north-eastern coast of Brazil, in the states of Piaui, Paraiba, Ceara, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco, Alagoas and Bahia. Marmosets were first discovered in Rio de Janeiro in 1929.

A marmoset’s home has a range of less than half an acre. Small marmosets can become prey for cats, Harpy eagles, hawks and snakes, therefore they dash from one safe spot to the next. Marmosets have certain trees they like within their territory.

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Marmosets

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Dynamics

Marmosets are omnivores, which means they eat a variety of food. Their diet includes insects, fruit, tree saps and other small animals. Wild marmosets eat flowers, nectar, tree saps, gums, insects, spiders, lizards, amphibians, snails and other small invertebrates. Pygmy marmosets also eat quite a lot of food, but not as much. They eat gum, resin and they absolutely love tree sap! They also eat small insects including butterflies and grasshoppers, as well as nectar and various types of fruit.

Marmosets usually give birth to twins. All other primate species usually give birth to only one infant at a time, but marmosets are quite different. Sometimes they give single births or triplets, but these are less common.

A marmoset is pregnant for roughly between 140-146 days. A few weeks before giving birth, the female marmoset becomes a lot less active. If you happen to come across a marmoset giving birth, do not disturb them. Pregnancy for a marmoset usually takes place at night.

Marmosets give birth twice a year. Here is a picture of marmoset twins:

The male will typically carry the babies up and around until it is feeding time. After 30 days the babies start to take some food. When the babies are 40 days old, they can survive on solid milk and substitutes. Normally looking after the baby will take of least 100 days.

An adult marmoset’s diet is fruit, seeds, flowers, fungi, nectar, snails, lizards, tree frogs, bird eggs, nestlings and infant mammals. Yes, I know what you are thinking, this is a big diet! But adult marmosets especially need to eat loads of food.

Marmosets use their teeth to dig into trees to receive their tree sap.

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Marmosets

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Emilia’s marmosets live in groups of 4 to 15 individuals. These groups are led by a dominant male and female. The hierarchy is decided by age, not strength or any type of relationship. Females in the group are usually related, while the males leave the group around the time they reach adulthood. These groups have quite small territories of 25 to 100 acres that often overlap with competing groups. Marmosets communicate in many different ways, such as scent, vision and their voices.

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Marmosets

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Impact of Deforestation

What is Deforestation?If deforestation continues, most of the world’s forests will disappear in the space of a few decades. This will cause lots of species, including marmosets, to become extinct. Wood is still used as fuel in some places, especially developing countries. It is better to purchase renewable energy, such as Solar, geothermal and wind energy to help stop deforestation.

In about 100 years there will be no rainforests unless we can stop this deforestation. Every minute, forests the size of 20 football fields will be cut down. If you don’t know what deforestation is, it is when forests are converted for other purposes by cutting down the trees to clear the land for other use. With 7 billion people in the planet, we need more land to build cities, raise livestock and grow food. People also make money by clearing the forests and selling the lumber and wood to be converted into other products such as paper.

Impact of Deforestation on MarmosetsDespite large amounts of deforestation taking place in the Amazonian rainforests, luckily the different species of marmosets are widespread and they are able to adapt well to new habitats. This means that the International Union for Conversation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species has put the marmosets into the category of Least Concern.

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Marmosets

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Conclusion

I think it is upsetting that marmosets' homes are being cut down and I wish I could help somehow, because in my opinion they are so cute!

At first, I didn’t even know what a marmoset was, so this has given me a great idea of what it’s like to be a marmoset.

I don’t know about you, but although marmosets are extremely cute, I wouldn’t like to be one. This is because I wouldn’t like to be an animal living in the rainforest. I already have all I need here in Moneyreagh!

In summary, I’m relieved that they are not extinct or vulnerable. I can’t wait until the next time I visit a zoo so I can see one.

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Marmosets