The World's Smallest Monkey- The Amazing Life of Pygmy Marmosets

  Did you ever except to hear that there is an animal that can fit in the palm of your hand? Well, your eyes didn't deceive you because you read that right, there is actually a monkey species that is very well known for that. The pygmy marmoset is the world's smallest monkey and it is definitely small enough to fit in the palm of your hand. The marmoset is known to be a small New World monkey that is native to rain-forests of the western Amazon Basin in South America. To give you an idea of how small this species of monkey really is, it weights in at just 100 grams. Let's take a look at some interesting facts on this amazing animal.

  The pygmy marmoset is one of the fairly easy going creatures in the Animal Kingdom because they try their best to stay out of everyone else way. Being the world's smallest monkeys definitely has some perks to it because of various reasons. According to a-z-animals.com/animals/pygmy-imarmoset, "The low weight of the pygmy marmoset allows the pygmy marmoset to reach the canopy tree tops, a place where many of the larger species of monkey cannot reach. Here the pygmy marmoset eats fruits, berries, insects and small reptile safely high above any dangerous predator." This species of monkey may be small and look cute but they are not to be messed with because they have weapons in their arsenal that allow them to provide and protect themselves. 

  This species of monkey may look cute and defenseless but they have developed methods that are essential to their survival. These little guys protect themselves by hiding among the rain-forest plants and by dashing and leaping from danger. In addition, they have coloration that camouflages them from predators. As stated on www.reference.com/pets-animals/pygmy-marmosets-pro... , "Pygmy marmoset bodies grow only about 6-inches long, have black and brown stripes on their orange-brown bodies, which blend in with the light and shadows of their habitat." The website points out that the main predators of the Pygmy Marmoset are the birds of prey such as hawks and harpy eagles. They mainly keep to the lower levels of the rain-forest and to help them spot danger, they have flexible necks which enable their heads to turn 180 degrees. To avoid raptors and other predators such as cats and snakes, they have the ability to move very quickly and leap more than 16 feet from one branch to another. The website also states that, "Pygmy marmosets live in social groups of up to nine members, which further protects them, as all the members keep watch for danger. They have an intricate system of chattering in varying frequencies to communicate with each other." It's also interesting to note that to protect the new babies when they are first born, Pygmy marmoset fathers carry them around piggyback for a few weeks. The mother's primary role is feeding and cleaning the baby. When the young ones have grown a bit, they hide while the rest of the group forages for food.

  This group of monkeys are known for an average lifespan of 12 years in the wild. Their is no specific information that would jump out at anyone because the information is just repeated throughout. any means of research on the Pygmy Marmoset. But something that may be of interest to people is the fact that these animals give birth to fraternal twins at an unusual rate, meanwhile most primates give birth to only one offspring at a time. This being said, marmosets give birth to twins 70 percent. Just like every other science related news there are things that aren't heavily sourced.