Field Observation of Snake-Mobbing in a Group of Saddle-Back Tamarins, Saguinus fuscicollis nigrifrons

Abstract

At the Rio Blanco in Northeastern Peru a group of 6 saddle-back tamarins was observed to mob two Corallus enydris snakes which were hanging from a liana. These and other observations of snake-mobbing demonstrate that callitricids exhibit a special behaviour against potential predators, which is very similar to the mobbing displays of birds and other mammals. It is suggested that the adaptive significance of snake-mobbing in tamarins lies in the cultural transmission of information about potential predators.