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Geophagy in moustached tamarins,Saguinus mystax (platyrrhini: Callitrichidae), at the Río Blanco, Peruvian Amazonia

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Abstract

During a field study at the Río Blanco in northeastern Peru between June and September 1990, moustached tamarins (Saguinus mystax) were observed to feed on soil material on three different occasions. Soil was taken directly from bare spots of surface soil (two observations) and from the broken mound of leaf-cutting ants (Atta sp.; one observation). Exposed surface soil is rare throughout the study area. Geochemical analyses of the soils that were consumed showed elevated concentrations of several elements in the ant mound sample compared to the other two soil samples. The most likely hypothesis for the function of soil feeding in moustached tamarins is that it serves in mineral supplementation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Deutsches Primatenzentrum (German Primate Center), Kellnerweg 4, 3400, Göttingen, Germany

    Eckhard W. Heymann

  2. Institute of Geochemistry, University of Göttingen, Goldschmidtstrasse 1, 3400, Göttingen, Germany

    Gerald Hartmann

Authors
  1. Eckhard W. Heymann
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  2. Gerald Hartmann
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Heymann, E.W., Hartmann, G. Geophagy in moustached tamarins,Saguinus mystax (platyrrhini: Callitrichidae), at the Río Blanco, Peruvian Amazonia. Primates 32, 533–537 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02381945

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02381945

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