Geoffroy's Tamarin - Behavior

Behavior

Like all callitrichides, Geoffroy's tamarin is diurnal and arboreal. Unlike some other New World monkeys, it does come down to the ground occasionally. This is normally done only in special circumstances, such as to acquire certain foods or to get to a tree it cannot otherwise reach. Group size is generally between three and nine monkeys, with three to five being most common. Groups often consist of more than one adult of each gender. Adults of both genders migrate between groups. Groups show some degree of territorial defense. Population densities on Barro Colorado Island in Panama range between 3.6 and 5.7 monkeys per square kilometer, but in other areas the population density can be as much as 20 to 30 monkeys per square kilometer. On average, Geoffroy's tamarin ranges 2061 meters per day. Home range size varies between 9.4 hectares and 32 hectares.

Communication occurs both though vocalization and by visual gestures. Vocalizations that have been recorded include whistles, twitters, trills, loud or soft sharp notes, sneezes and long rasps. Body postures and displays that reveal more of the white coloration, such as standing on hind legs and piloerection, tend to be associated with aggression. Females often signal willingness to mate by rapidly coiling their tails.

Unlike squirrels, which often move through the canopy by climbing and descending vertical tree trunks, Geoffroy's tamarin generally avoids large vertical supports during travel. It prefers to move across thin branches, ascending and descending by long leaps. To the extent Geoffroy's tamarin uses large vertical supports for travel, it uses them most often for ascending rather than descending.

Geoffroy's tamarin generally avoids sympatric small and medium size monkey species such as the White-headed Capuchin and the Panamanian Night Monkey. Avoidance is spatial with respect to the capuchin, and temporal in the case of the night monkey, since Geoffroy's tamarin is only active during daylight hours and the Panamanian Night Monkey is only active at night. Geoffroy's tamarin is rarely observed in the vicinity of squirrels, although this appears to be the result of the squirrels avoiding interactions with the larger tamarins. Geoffroy's tamarin generally attempts to escape when birds of prey approach, regardless of whether the bird presents a true danger. However, the tamarins ignore one bird of prey, the Double-toothed Kite, which sometimes follows the tamarins in an apparent effort to feed on small animals disturbed by the tamarins.

The diet of Geoffroy's tamarin is similar to some species of tyrant flycatcher birds in Panama, and they share similar vocalizations. The tamarins may use the flycatcher calls to help find favorable food sources. The flycatchers and tamarins have different patterns of activity, which minimizes competition for similar food sources. The flycatchers are most active shortly after dawn and tend to rest in the middle of the day. The tamarins do not become active until about 45 minutes after full daylight, but remain active for most of the remaining daylight hours until an hour or less before sunset.