September 10, 2019: Troubling news for golden lion tamarins. Yellow fever threatens one of the world’s most renowned conservation successes.
YELLOW FEVER OUTBREAK THREATENS ENDANGERED GOLDEN LION TAMARINS
The wild population of golden lion tamarins suffered a dramatic decline in the wake of the worst yellow fever outbreak in Brazil in 80 years. According a study published today in the journal Nature.com, the wild tamarin population has declined by 32 percent since 2014. This reduction marks the first drastic loss the species has faced in nearly 40 years.
Prior to the yellow fever epizootic, golden lion tamarin numbers had been steadily increasing—from a few hundred in the 1970s to 3,700 in recent years. The team at Saving Nature joined the effort to save the golden lion tamarin in 2012, helping connect them to larger forest expanses capable of supporting viable populations.
A recent population census by the Associação Mico-Leão-Dourado (AMLD; golden lion tamarin association), triggered by the spread of yellow fever throughout the region, found only 2,500 survivors. A reduction in population size of this magnitude will make it difficult for golden lion tamarins to find unrelated mates, resulting in inbreeding and local extinctions of the species.
Yellow fever was first detected near their geographic range in early 2017, and reports of sick or dead tamarins surfaced in 2018. The AMLD is currently hard at work to reduce the devastating impact of yellow fever on golden lion tamarins. Their multifaceted approach includes an ongoing population census, yellow fever risk and acquired immunity assessments, strategic translocations, and a vaccination program.
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