Two endangered golden lion tamarins are clinging to their mother for dear life today at the Denver Zoo.
The fluffy babies are not really lions, they’re primates — but with a heavy ruff of fur around their necks, they resemble their feline namesakes.
The babies were born July 25, each weighing about as much as a kiwi fruit. Zoo officials don’t yet know their gender.
Golden lion tamarins are natives of Brazil’s coastal forests. There are an estimated 1,000 remaining in the wild.
They were classified as critically endangered until 2000, when a re-introduction program began to take hold. More than 150 captive-bred golden lion tamarins are now living in the wild.
The tamarins are on exhibit in the Emerald Forest area of the zoo’s Primate Panorama.
Staff writer Demetria Gallegos can be reached at 303-954-1683 or at dgallegos@denverpost.com.
