Next up in our Peruvian primatological peregrination is the Saddleback Tamarin, named after the saddle-like colouration of the fur on their backs.

Saddleback Tamarins are territorial monkeys that live in troops of up to 15 individuals. Occasionally, territories overlap with other groups, and the atmosphere of these encounters can vary dramatically. Sometimes, perhaps as expected, the meetings turn violent, with chasing and fighting between the rival groups. However, at other times, the two groups coexist peacefully – grooming, playing and even mating with each other. The factors that define whether or not groups get along seem to be little more than playground politics.

In a rarity amongst mammals, Tamarin societies are typically polyandrous – meaning that there is a single dominant female who mates with all the mature males in the troop. The remaining females are kept in check by the alpha-female and not permitted to breed, in a practice referred to as reproductive suppression.

Amazingly, around 80% of Tamarin births are twins. The alpha-female, exhausted from nursing two hungry mouths, relies on the rest of the troop to collectively raise the baby monkeys and cater to all of their remaining needs.

I will never cease to be amazed by the enormous variety of mating preferences and familial structures that nature has managed to successfully maintain.

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This post is part of a series featuring four fantastic primates photographed at Los Amigos Biological Station in Peru. Check out our posts on the Squirrel Monkey, the Brown Capuchin and Toppin’s Titi to learn more!

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Saddleback Tamarin (Saguinus fuscicollis), Los Amigos Biological Station, Madre de Dios, Peru

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PS. Dear primatologists, I know Saguinus fuscicollis has recently been split into a million different species. I couldn’t be bothered getting into it. Sorry.