Hurt by hunting, farming, logging, firewood collecting and oil-industry operations, it is protected only in two villages, where it is considered sacred. So common in the 1950's that is was considered a crop pest, it is found in only a fraction of the forests it once roamed. Pressured by agriculture, logging and mining of gemstones, it may have vanished from one of two reserves where it is protected. If an African expedition turns up no evidence of this colobus, it may have been the only primate to become extinct in the 20th century. Scientists were amazed that this tamarin, discovered only in 1990, could remain undetected so long in a highly developed part of Brazil.
Hunters shoot the adults for meat and capture the younger animals to sell as pets.
It is protected in parks and reserves, but these areas are vulnerable to illegal human encroachment and agriculture.