There are thought to be just 2,000 left in the wild
Born to parents Leo and Treat following a five month pregnancy, the twins are of the cotton-top tamarin variety, so named for the mane of white fur on their head resembling a ball of cotton wool.
It’s estimated that just 2,000 survive in the wild, having also been impacted by the illegal wildlife trade in which they are captured and sold as pets – making the birth of twins at the zoo a significant moment for their conservation. “This severe reduction in their population has meant that our conservation breeding programme, coordinated with other major international zoos, is providing an increasingly vital lifeline.”
The monkeys use a system of facial expressions and more than 38 different vocalisations – which experts say shows evidence of grammatical structure – to communicate with each other.
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