Female Tamarin Born At Racine Zoo

RACINE, WI — The Racine Zoo has announced that its breeding pair of emperor tamarins has given birth to a female on Dec. 27.

The Zoo said that mother Isabella, from New England Zoo and father Marquis, from San Francisco Zoo, have been mates since the summer of 2012, and have given birth to six offspring.

"Marquis and Isabella continue to be amazing parents. The Racine Zoo and the Como Zoo in St. Paul are currently the only zoos successfully breeding this type of tamarin," zoo officials said.

According to zoo officials, over the past three years, the population of emperor tamarins has grown by an average of seven percent. Isabella and Marquis have contributed to this growth, with a single birth in 2015, a set of twins born in 2016 and another set of twins in 2017.

Isabella is said to be one of two reliably breeding females at the Racine Zoo at present. “We couldn’t be happier for this tamarin birth,” Crystal Champeau-Williams, primary primate specialist at the Racine Zoo, said. “Our breeding pair are such great parents and with only 27 individuals in zoos, we hope they continue to help improve the genetics of this small, captive population.”

In addition to the birth, zoo officials say they have seen some other exciting changes in the tamarin family. In
Oct., female offspring Avril left on a breeding recommendation for the Chattanooga Zoo. She reportedly is bonding well with her new mate and will hopefully have offspring of her own in the future, zoo officials reported.

The tamarin is a species of tamarin that lives in the southwest Amazon Basin, and other parts of South America. It is said that the emperor tamarin was named for its resemblance to the German emperor Wilhelm II.

Image Via Racine Zoo