Category Archives: Mammals

Marmosets belong to the family Callithricidae, as opposed to the true monkeys, which belong to the family Cebidae. Yet marmosets have been described by one eminent naturalist as “the most perfectly adapted of all Primates for arboreal existence.” Their movements are quick and jerky, and are carried out with such suddenness that they can disappear … Continue reading

The Douroucouli monkey or Aotes is unique among the New World monkeys in being the only one that is truly nocturnal—night living. Uniqueness in nature is not a matter of chance or caprice, as it may sometimes seem to man, but is the result of selection and specialization for survival. In the douroucouli it is … Continue reading

“It has, I think, now been shewn that man and the higher animals, especially the Primates, have some few instincts in common. All have the same senses, intuitions, and sensations,—similar passions, affections, and emotions, even the more complex ones, such as jealousy, suspicion, emulation, gratitude, and magnanimity; they practise deceit and are revengeful; they are … Continue reading

Men have called certain cats “mysterious” because of cats’ impenetrable gaze. The domestic cat used to be considered an ally of sorcerers, and even as a bit of a sorcerer itself. The adjective “lazy” might be applied to its blissful way of stretching and yawning when it is sleepy. If the perfect proportions of its … Continue reading

The great anteater is a very strange-looking animal. It almost looks like a mistake of nature, as do most anteaters. None of the parts of its body seem to go with the others. Its very long head ends in a long nozzle- shaped snout. At the end of its snout is an inconspicuous slit, less … Continue reading

THE puma is a carnivorous mammal, a member of the cat family which includes such magnificent animals as the jaguar, the lion, the tiger, and the leopard. Other names for the puma are cougar, mountain lion, and catamount. It is only found in North, Central and South America.

Each tribe of South American Indians has given the jaguar a different name. Also this jungle cat is commonly called the onca in Brazil and el tigre in Spanish. The Brazilians describe a dangerous acquaintance as “a friend of the onca (amigo cia onca)’ The cat’s most common name, though, is the jaguar. This name … Continue reading

Squirrels are attractive animals, belonging to the Sciuridae family, which is so large that scientists have divided it into sub-families. In Greek the family name means “shade tail.” Our common tree squirrels belong to the Sciuridae; the flying squirrels are classified as Petauristidae, a sub-family. Among its members are the common flying squirrel of North … Continue reading