Its eyes are almond-shaped. This species inhabits upper Amazonia in South America C Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia and Brazil. It prefers riverside and floodplain forests. It lives in social groups as large as 15, comprised of a breeding pair and their offspring. A group defends its home range of less than an acre, and visits about one-third of its range each day.
Defense involves bouts of calling, chasing and displaying of their distinct white genitals.
Scent marking, prolonged mutual grooming, facial expressions and high-pitched vocalizations are among their other modes of communication. Its claws and small size allow it to cling to vertical trunks and branches. Spiders and insects are also important in their diet, and they occasionally eat fruits. Seven larger marmoset species are also specialized gum eaters. Only one female in a social group breeds and raises young.