The tamarin has become a flagship species, highlighting the demise of its tropical rain forest home. The golden lion tamarin's long, silky fur, particularly at the shoulders, gives it a lionlike mane.
Tamarins are some of the smallest members of the primate family.
Large rivers, barren lands, and croplands are insurmountable barriers to these tiny monkeys. Isolated by these barriers, many different types of tamarins and marmosets have evolved in close proximity in the tropical rain forests of South America. The golden lion tamarin's historical distribution is not well known. Today, it is confined to three small areas of tropical rain forest in southeastern Brazil. The first population estimate of 400 to 500 animals was made in 1972.