# Golden Lion Tamarin — Facts, Threats & Conservation

*Leontopithecus rosalia*

> A golden lion tamarin (Leontopithecus rosalia) is a small, endangered New World monkey with a bright reddish-gold coat and a lion-like mane, native only to the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil.

**IUCN status:** Endangered (conservation comeback)  ·  **WARN range:** Brazil

## Quick facts
| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Lifespan | ~8 years wild; up to 20+ in human care |
| Weight | 482–680 g |
| Head-body length | ~20–25 cm (tail ~26–40 cm) |
| Diet | Omnivore: fruit, nectar, gums, insects, small vertebrates |
| Gestation | ~4.5 months |
| Young per birth | Usually twins |
| Baby name | Infant |
| Group name | Family group or troop (2–8 members) |
| Range | Atlantic Forest, Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil |
| CITES | Appendix I (since 1975) |

## Scientific classification
- **Kingdom:** Animalia
- **Phylum:** Chordata
- **Class:** Mammalia
- **Order:** Primates
- **Family:** Callitrichidae
- **Genus:** Leontopithecus
- **Species:** Leontopithecus rosalia (Linnaeus, 1766)

## Conservation status
- **Status:** Endangered
- **Population:** ~4,800 in the wild (2023 census); fewer than 200 at the 1960s low
- **Trend:** Stable
- **Assessed:** 2019 (assessment published 2021)
- **CITES:** Appendix I
- Down-listed from Critically Endangered to Endangered in 2003 after decades of breeding, reintroduction and habitat-restoration work; a 2017 yellow-fever outbreak killed roughly a third of the wild population.

## Key facts: Golden Lion Tamarin
- Endemic to the Atlantic Forest of Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, and found nowhere else in the wild.
- Classified Endangered by the IUCN, down-listed from Critically Endangered in 2003 after decades of recovery work.
- Wild numbers rose from fewer than 200 in the 1960s to roughly 4,800 by the 2023 census.
- Listed on CITES Appendix I, banning commercial international trade.
- Lives in close family groups of 2–8 and almost always gives birth to twins, with fathers and older siblings helping carry the young.
- A 2017 yellow-fever outbreak killed about a third of the wild population, and habitat fragmentation remains its biggest long-term threat.

## Why it is endangered
The golden lion tamarin's entire natural range sits inside the Atlantic Forest of southeastern Brazil, one of the most heavily cleared biomes on Earth. Centuries of logging, charcoal production, agriculture, cattle ranching and urban expansion have left only around 2% of the original forest, broken into small, isolated islands of mostly second-growth vegetation. Because the species depends on continuous tree canopy, these fragments trap small populations that cannot mix, raising the risk of inbreeding and local extinction. The IUCN lists the tamarin as Endangered under criterion B1ab(iii), reflecting a tiny and fragmented range rather than a free-falling population.

## Behaviour and ecology
Golden lion tamarins are diurnal, arboreal and squirrel-like, leaping and bounding through the mid-canopy in search of food. They are omnivores, eating fruit, flowers, nectar, plant gums, insects, spiders, snails, small lizards and bird eggs, and they use their long, slender fingers to probe bark crevices and bromeliads for hidden prey. They live in cohesive family groups of two to eight, usually built around a single breeding pair. Twins are the norm, and infant care is shared: fathers and older offspring carry the babies on their backs, returning them to the mother only to nurse. Groups sleep in tree holes and defend a home range of roughly 0.4 to 1 square kilometre with scent marks and calls.

## Threats and the comeback
The story of this species is unusually hopeful. Coordinated zoo breeding, reintroduction of captive-born animals, translocation of isolated groups and large-scale forest restoration lifted wild numbers from fewer than 200 to several thousand, and earned the 2003 down-listing from Critically Endangered to Endangered. But the recovery is fragile. In 2017 a yellow-fever epidemic swept through and killed roughly a third of the wild population, prompting an emergency vaccination effort. Ongoing fragmentation, road deaths, illegal capture for the pet trade and disease outbreaks mean the species still cannot survive without active management.

## What rescue and recovery involve
Saving the golden lion tamarin is as much about forests as about monkeys. The central strategy is connectivity: replanting native trees to build corridors that link isolated forest patches so separated family groups can meet, breed and recolonise. Other work includes monitoring and health screening of wild groups, vaccinating against yellow fever, rescuing and rehabilitating animals caught in the pet trade or stranded by clearance, and supporting the captive-breeding insurance population. All of it relies on Brazilian field teams, landowners and local communities choosing to protect and restore the forest the tamarin needs.

## Golden lion tamarin vs golden-headed lion tamarin
| Feature | Golden lion tamarin | Golden-headed lion tamarin |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Scientific name | Leontopithecus rosalia | Leontopithecus chrysomelas |
| Coat | Uniform reddish-gold | Black body with golden mane, limbs and tail |
| Range | Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil | Southern Bahia state, Brazil |
| IUCN status | Endangered | Endangered |
| CITES | Appendix I | Appendix I |

## What WARN does
WARN CIC is a registered global not-for-profit animal welfare organisation that funds local partner shelters, sanctuaries and rescue teams in Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brazil and Colombia. The golden lion tamarin lives only in Brazil, squarely within WARN's funded focus, so donations here are channelled to Brazilian partners working on forest restoration, wildlife rescue and rehabilitation, and community-led habitat protection in and around the Atlantic Forest. Beyond that funded focus, WARN's wider role is search and education: helping people understand why this endemic monkey survives only where its forest is connected and protected.

Every gift helps fund the Brazilian field partners replanting the forest corridors that let isolated golden lion tamarin families find each other again — turning fragmented habitat back into a living forest.

## Frequently asked questions: Golden Lion Tamarin
### How long do golden lion tamarins live?
They typically live about 8 years in the wild, though many die in their first year. In human care they can reach 15 to 20 years or more.

### What do golden lion tamarins eat?
They are omnivores, feeding on fruit, flowers, nectar and plant gums alongside insects, spiders, snails, small lizards and bird eggs.

### How big is a golden lion tamarin?
They are small monkeys, weighing about 482–680 grams, with a head-and-body length of roughly 20–25 cm and a tail of about 26–40 cm.

### Are golden lion tamarins dangerous?
No. They are tiny, shy forest monkeys that pose no threat to people, though like all wild animals they can bite if handled and should never be kept as pets.

### How many golden lion tamarins are left?
The most recent census put the wild population at roughly 4,800, up from fewer than 200 in the 1960s. They remain Endangered.

### What is a baby golden lion tamarin called?
A young tamarin is called an infant, and females almost always give birth to twins after a gestation of about four and a half months.

## Sources
- [IUCN Red List – Leontopithecus rosalia](https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/11506/192327291)
- [CITES – Golden Lion Tamarin](https://cites.org/eng/gallery/species/mammal/golden_lion_tamarin.html)
- [Smithsonian's National Zoo – Golden lion tamarin](https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/golden-lion-tamarin)
- [New England Primate Conservancy – Golden Lion Tamarin](https://neprimateconservancy.org/golden-lion-tamarin/)
- [U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service – Golden Lion Tamarin](https://www.fws.gov/species/golden-lion-tamarin-leontopithecus-rosalia)
- [Save the Golden Lion Tamarin – Status](https://www.savetheliontamarin.org/status)

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Full guide: https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/wildlife-guides/golden-lion-tamarin