Adelaide Zoo

As a conservation charity, every visit, adoption, donation and ticket helps save species from extinction

Cotton-top Tamarin

Animal Facts

  • Genus:

    Saguinus

  • Species:

    S. oedipus

  • Conservation
    Status:

    Critically Endangered

  • Found In:

    Columbia

  • Length:

    20-25cm

  • Weight:

    430g

Meet the Cotton-top Tamarin Troop!

Adelaide Zoo is home to a family group of Cotton-top Tamarins.

Gomez was born on 20 January 2010. His favourite treat is sultanas, which zoo keepers give out every morning when they first check on the group. He is joined by female Peppa, who was born at Halls Gap Zoo in 2015 and arrived to Adelaide Zoo in September 2020.

Peppa and Gomez have been busy welcoming several sets of Cotton-top tamarin twins in recent years. In October 2022, they welcomed their first males, Brenton and Pablo. A year later, in November 2023, Carlos and Camilo arrived, followed by another set of males, Ora and Oscar, in 2024. Most recently, female twins were born and named by the public: Azura, representing the tranquility and beauty of the sky, and Mira, meaning wonderful or admirable.

The younger twins have already begun exploring away from mum. Dad and their older siblings are learning parenting skills by being in a family group and ‘babysitting’ the younger tamarins

Cotton-top Tamarins are very easy to recognise with the large white crest of hair on their heads. They live in family groups where only the dominant pair breeds. The dominant female uses a pheromone to prevent the other females in the family from breeding with twins being a regular occurrence in tamarin society. After birth the entire family will help carry and care for the young.

In the wild their diets usually consist of insects and plant materials such as fruit, leaves and gums. Here at the zoo we make sure they have a balanced diet of fruit, vegetables and insects, and a special primate “cake” to ensure they receive all the vitamins and minerals they need.

Cotton-top Tamarins are a critically endangered species with around 6,000 left in the lowland forests of Colombia, the only place in the world they are now found.

Love Cotton-top Tamarins? Join the troop and ensure tamarins stay a swing ahead of extinction! There are many ways you can help support these amazing animals. 

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