Kolkata: In the sixth seizure of exotic species at Kolkata airport this year, the Customs officials have seized two rare primates, golden lion tamarins, late on Monday night. Also known as golden lion marmoset, they are endemic to coastal forests of Brazil and considered endangered on IUCN Red list.
A pied sun conure, four lorikeets and two hanging parrots have also been seized. The consignment was brought on an Indigo flight from Bangkok.
The golden lion marmoset is a small new world monkey of the family Callitrichidae and is endemic to the Atlantic coastal forests of Brazil. A 2022-2023 census estimated about 4,800 individuals living in the non-coastal area of the São João and Macaé river basins, with unknown but smaller additional numbers in limited coastal forests and to the west of the primary area of occurrence.
Sources said a youth from Thane has been detained in this connection.
The golden lion tamarin gets its name from its bright reddish-orange pelage and extra-long hairs around the face and ears. Among the threats they face are habitat loss & fragmentation — The biggest is the destruction of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest for timber, cattle ranching, agriculture and urban sprawl — disease (yellow fever outbreaks have significantly impacted wild populations), illegal pet trade and climate change.
An official of ministry of fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying, animal quarantine and certification services, Kolkata, said since these animals and birds were brought illegally without any health clearance, the repatriation process has been initiated. "Keeping them might pose threat to the biosecurity here," she added.