BIOLOGISTS have expressed surprise that an unknown monkey discovered
in Brazil last week, and captured in this artist鈥檚 impression, had not been
found earlier. The National Museum in Rio de Janeiro announced last week
that the black-faced lion tamarin was found on a island near Sao Paulo,
one of the world鈥檚 most densely populated regions.
The monkey, about the size of a squirrel, has a lion-like mane and a
striking gold and black coat. Russell Mittermeier, a primatologist who is
the president of Conservation International, described the find as 鈥榦ne
of the most amazing primatological discoveries this century鈥�. What was so
surprising, he said, was to find a new primate in an area so developed.
