200 
NATURAL HISTORY. 
bordering the campos in the interior parts of Brazil. The colours of its fur are beautifully varied * the 
fore part of the body is white, with the hands grey ; the hind part black, with the rump and underside 
•deadish-tawny ; the tail is banded with grey and black. Its face is partly naked, and flesh-coloured, 
•and the ears are fringed with long hairs. The specimen was not more than eight inches in length, 
'exclusive of the tail. Altogether I thought it the prettiest species of its family I had yet seen. One 
would mistake it at first sight for a kitten, from its small size, varied colours, and the softness of its fur. 
It was a most timid creature, screaming and biting when any one attempted to handle it. It became 
familiar, however, with the people of the house a few days after it came into their possession. When 
hungry or uneasy it uttered a weak, querulous cry, a shrill note, which was sometimes prolonged so 
as to resemble the stridulation of a Grasshopper.” 
THE TAMARINS.* 
The Tamarins have the upper front teeth placed close together; and the lower, which are broad 
and truncated, project forwards. The lower canines are longer and larger than in the Marmosets. 
Living in the forests of the Isthmus of Panama, Peru, and of the Brazils, they sometimes collect 
in troops. They are very restless, active, and probably indulge in a very mixed diet of fruit, eggs, 
insects, and small birds. The smaller they are the more violent are they in their gesticulations 
and rage. They appear, when annoyed, bristling up their hair in a very fierce manner. They are, 
however, easily tamed, and are made great pets of by the natives. 
THE NEGRO TAMARIN.f 
Bates gives some interesting details regarding the little Midas, or Tamarin Monkeys, which he saw 
during his long residence on the Amazons. He writes : — 
“ They are small in size, and more like Squirrels than true Monkeys in their manner of climbing. 
The nails, except those of the hind thumbs, are long and claw-shaped, like those of Squirrels, and the 
thumbs of the fore extremities, or hands, are not opposable to the other fingers. I do not mean to 
convey that they have a near relationship to Squirrels, which belong to the Rodents, an inferior order 
•of Mammals ; their resemblance to those animals is merely a superficial one. The body is long and 
slender, clothed with soft hair, and the tail, which is nearly twice the length of the trunk, is not 
prehensile. The hind limbs are much larger in volume than the anterior pair. The Midas Ursulas is 
never seen in large flocks ; three or four is the greatest number observed together. It seems to be less 
afraid of the neighbourhood of man than any other Monkey. I sometimes sa w it in the woods which 
border the suburban streets, and once I espied two individuals in a thicket behind the English Consul’s 
house at Nazareth. Its mode of progression along the main boughs of the lofty trees is like that of the 
Squirrels ; it does not ascend to the slender branches, or take wonderful flying leaps like those 
Monkeys whose prehensile tails and flexible hands fit them for such headlong travelling. It confines 
itself to the larger boughs and trunks of trees, the long nails being of great assistance to the creature, 
■enabling it to cling securely to the bark, and it is often seen passing rapidly round the perpendicular 
•cylindrical trunks. It is a quick, restless, timid little creature, and has a great share of curiosity, for 
when a person passes by under the trees along which a flock is running, they always stop for a few 
moments to have a stare at the intruder. In Para, the Ursulas is often seen in a tame state in the 
houses of the inhabitants. When full grown it is about nine inches long, independently of the tail, 
which measures fifteen inches. The fur is thick, and black in colour, with the exception of a reddish- 
brown streak down the middle of the back. When first taken, or when kept tied up, it is very timid 
and irritable. It will not allow itself to be approached, but keeps retreating backwards in a querulous 
humour, uttering a twittering, complaining noise, its dark, watchful eyes, expressive of distrust, 
observant of every movement which takes place near it. When treated kindly, however, as it generally 
is in the houses of the natives, it becomes very tame and familiar. I once saw one as playful as a 
kitten, running about the house after the negro children, who fondled it to their hearts’ content. It 
acted somewhat differently towards strangers, and seemed not to like them to sit on the hammock which 
was slung in the room, leaping up, trying to bite, and other vise annoying them. It is generally feci on 
Midas. 
f Midas ursulus. 
