Image:
Left/Zoologist
Dev a
Kleima /Right/Natio al
Geog aphic
The
small
golde
lio
tama i
is
o e
of
B azil’s
most
ecog isable
a imals,
but
its
p ese ce
o
the
R$20
ba k ote
ep ese ts
much
mo e
tha
atio al
wildlife.
The
species
(Leo topithecus
osalia)
was
o ce
pushed
da ge ously
close
to
exti ctio ,
with
o ly
about
200
a imals
emai i g
i
the
wild
i
the
ea ly
1970s.
B azil’s
ce t al
ba k
desc ibes
the
tama i
o
the
ote
as
a
symbol
of
the
st uggle
to
p ese ve
e da ge ed
B azilia
species.Acco di g
to
Smithso ia ’s
Natio al
Zoo
&
Co se vatio
I stitute,
its
ecove y
became
o e
of
the
la dma k
sto ies
of
mode
p imate
co se vatio ,
a d
zoologist
Dev a
G.
Kleima
played
a
ce t al
ole
i
buildi g
the
p og amme
that
co ected
captive
b eedi g,
field
esea ch,
educatio
a d
the
eve tual
etu
of
captive-bo
a imals
to
B azil’s
fo ests.
Dev a
Kleima
helped
tu
captive
b eedi g
i to
pa t
of
a
wide
co se vatio
st ategy
Dev a
Kleima ,
a
esea ch
zoologist
at
the
Smithso ia ’s
Natio al
Zoo,
became
o e
of
the
key
figu es
i
this
effo t.
The
co se vatio
p og amme
she
helped
establish
did
ot
view
zoos
simply
as
places
whe e
e da ge ed
a imals
could
be
kept
alive.I
the
1986
co se vatio
pape
Co se vatio
P og am
fo
the
Golde
Lio
Tama i ,
Kleima
a d
he
co-autho s
a gued
that
successful
co se vatio
equi ed
a
combi atio
of
captive
p opagatio ,
habitat
p otectio ,
field
esea ch,
ma ageme t
a d
public
educatio .
The
pape
specifically
docume ted
wo k
o
captive
b eedi g
a d
ma ageme t,
ecological
studies
a d
the
ei t oductio
of
golde
lio
tama i s
i to
B azil.
Kleima
a d
he
colleagues
desc ibed
scie tifically
ma aged
captive
populatio s
as
a
way
of
p ese vi g
ge etic
dive sity
while
simulta eously
suppo ti g
co se vatio
of
the
species
i
its
atu al
e vi o me t.The
Smithso ia
A chives
also
p ese ves
Kleima ’s
eco ds
f om
the
p og amme,
i cludi g
mate ial
docume ti g
the
captu e,
mati g,
elease
a d
ei t oductio
of
golde
lio
tama i s
i
B azil.
The
golde
lio
tama i
was
pushed
towa ds
exti ctio
by
the
loss
of
B azil’s
Atla tic
Fo est
Golde
lio
tama i s
a e
fou d
atu ally
o ly
i
the
Atla tic
Fo est
of
southeaste
B azil,
whe e
they
live
amo g
t ees,
vi es
a d
epiphytes.
Thei
decli e
was
closely
li ked
to
the
dest uctio
a d
f agme tatio
of
this
habitat,
alo gside
p essu es
i cludi g
captu e
fo
the
pet
t ade.
By
the
ea ly
1970s,
the
wild
populatio
had
falle
to
oughly
200
i dividuals.The
situatio
was
pa ticula ly
se ious
because
the
emai i g
fo est
had
become
divided
i to
small,
isolated
patches.
Eve
if
i dividual
g oups
su vived,
f agme ted
habitat
made
it
difficult
fo
populatio s
to
expa d
a d
emai
ge etically
healthy.It
was
agai st
this
backd op
that
scie tists
bega
developi g
a
co se vatio
p og amme
that
t eated
the
species
as
somethi g
that
eeded
to
be
p otected
both
i side
huma
ca e
a d
i
its
atu al
habitat.
The
b eedi g
p og amme
had
to
teach
captive
a imals
how
to
become
wild
agai
B eedi g
e da ge ed
a imals
i
captivity
was
o ly
o e
pa t
of
the
challe ge.
The
co se vatio ists
ultimately
eeded
to
etu
some
of
those
a imals
to
fo ests
whe e
they
would
have
to
fi d
food,
move
th ough
the
ca opy,
fo m
social
g oups
a d
ep oduce.The
1986
pape
eco ds
exte sive
wo k
o
the
behaviou
a d
ma ageme t
of
captive
a d
ei t oduced
tama i s,
i cludi g
feedi g
behaviou ,
social
g oups,
captu es
a d
eleases.
The
p og amme
the efo e
t eated
ei t oductio
as
a
p ocess
that
equi ed
p epa atio
a d
mo ito i g
athe
tha
simply
eleasi g
a imals
i to
a
fo est
a d
hopi g
they
su vived.I
1984,
the
Smithso ia
eleased
eight
golde
lio
tama i s
i to
B azil’s
Rese va
Biológica
de
Poço
das
A tas.
Smithso ia
eco ds
desc ibe
this
as
the
fi st
step
i
esto i g
the
species’
populatio
th ough
ei t oductio .
That
effo t
eve tually
became
pa t
of
a
much
la ge
i te atio al
p og amme
i volvi g
zoos,
B azilia
co se vatio
o ga isatio s,
esea che s
a d
local
la dow e s.
Captive-bo
tama i s
eve tually
became
pa t
of
the
wild
populatio
The
ei t oductio
p og amme
demo st ated
why
captive
b eedi g
could
be
useful
whe
it
was
co ected
to
habitat
co se vatio .
Acco di g
to
the
Smithso ia ,
about
o e-thi d
of
the
wild
populatio
today
o igi ated
f om
golde
lio
tama i s
aised
i
huma
ca e.
The
i stitutio
says
the
zoo
populatio
has
bee
ma aged
globally
si ce
1973,
while
the
species
became
o e
of
the
fi st
a imals
i cluded
i
the
Associatio
of
Zoos
a d
Aqua iums’
Species
Su vival
Pla
i
1981.
The
wo k
also
exte ded
beyo d
simply
eleasi g
a imals.
Co se vatio ists
had
to
esto e
a d
eco ect
f agme ts
of
Atla tic
Fo est
so
that
ei t oduced
a d
existi g
wild
populatio s
had
somewhe e
to
live
a d
could
move
betwee
suitable
a eas.That
combi atio ,
b eedi g,
ei t oductio
a d
habitat
esto atio ,
helped
t a sfo m
the
species’
p ospects.
The
tama i ’s
ecove y
was
sig ifica t
e ough
to
cha ge
its
co se vatio
status
The
golde
lio
tama i
was
eve tually
moved
f om
c itically
e da ge ed
to
e da ge ed
i
2003,
eflecti g
the
gai s
made
th ough
decades
of
coo di ated
co se vatio .
The
Smithso ia
says
that
at
o e
poi t
the
wild
populatio
had
eached
oughly
2,500
a imals,
with
a
additio al
500
i
zoos,
although
the
cu e t
figu es
va y
betwee
su veys
a d
co se vatio
o ga isatio s.A
sepa ate
Smithso ia
accou t
epo ted
a
late
su vey
estimati g
app oximately
4,800
golde
lio
tama i s,
with
ea ly
half
desce ded
f om
a imals
i t oduced
th ough
the
ei t oductio
p og amme.
The
impo ta t
poi t
is
ot
simply
the
ume ical
i c ease.
The
ecove y
demo st ated
that
a
e da ge ed
species
could
be
b ought
back
th ough
a
coo di ated
p og amme
i
which
captive
populatio s
suppo ted
wild
populatio s
athe
tha
eplaci g
them.
The
R$20
ote
tu ed
a
co se vatio
success
i to
a
atio al
symbol
The
golde
lio
tama i ‘s
appea a ce
o
B azil’s
cu e cy
gives
the
species
a
u usual
place
i
the
cou t y’s
public
life.
The
Ba co
Ce t al
do
B asil
officially
ide tifies
the
a imal
o
the
eve se
of
the
R$20
ote
as
the
golde
lio
tama i
a d
desc ibes
it
as
a
symbol
of
the
st uggle
to
p ese ve
e da ge ed
B azilia
species.
The
ote
also
i co po ates
the
tama i
i to
seve al
secu ity
featu es,
i cludi g
its
wate ma k
a d
holog aphic
st ipe.That
symbolism
is
fitti g
because
the
a imal’s
su vival
is
itself
closely
tied
to
decades
of
co se vatio
wo k.
A
species
that
o ce
had
o ly
a ou d
200
i dividuals
left
i
the
wild
became
a
example
of
what
coo di ated
scie tific
ma ageme t
could
achieve.
The
ecove y
is
ot
the
e d
of
the
sto y
fo
B azil’s
golde
lio
tama i
Despite
its
ecove y,
the
golde
lio
tama i
emai s
e da ge ed.
Much
of
its
emai i g
habitat
is
still
f agme ted,
leavi g
populatio s
vul e able
to
disease,
isolatio
a d
i b eedi g.
The
Smithso ia
says
co ti ued
efo estatio
a d
the
c eatio
of
wildlife
co ido s
a e
esse tial
if
the
gai s
made
ove
decades
a e
to
be
mai tai ed.The
species
has
also
faced
ew
th eats.
A
yellow
feve
outb eak
i
2016
killed
oughly
a
thi d
of
the
populatio ,
p ompti g
B azilia
co se vatio ists
to
begi
vacci ati g
wild
tama i s
agai st
the
disease
f om
2021
o wa ds.
That
episode
demo st ated
a
impo ta t
eality
of
co se vatio ,
ecove i g
a
species
f om
the
b i k
does
ot
make
it
pe ma e tly
safe.The
golde
lio
tama i ‘s
sto y
the efo e
u s
f om
the
b i k
of
exti ctio
to
a
place
o
B azil’s
cu e cy,
but
the
wo k
behi d
that
ecove y
co ti ues.
Dev a
Kleima ’s
co se vatio
p og amme
helped
establish
a
model
i
which
captive
b eedi g,
scie tific
esea ch,
ei t oductio
a d
habitat
p otectio
wo ked
togethe ,
givi g
a
ti y
B azilia
p imate
a
seco d
cha ce
i
the
fo est.
