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Wied's Marmoset is a New World monkey that lives in lowland
and sub-montane humid forest, seasonal rain forest, and white sand
piaçava forest of eastern Brazil. They are also known to use cacao
plantations which are shaded with some native trees remaining from
the original forest, and secondary growth forest in abandoned rubber
plantations. They eat fruits, flowers, nectar, plant exudates (gums,
saps, latex) and animal prey (including frogs, snails, lizards,
spiders and insects). They gouge trees trunks, branches and vines
of certain species to stimulate the flow of gum, which they eat,
and in some species form a notable component of the diet. Since
these are harvested from the middle and lower part of the forest,
they often travel and forage in the company of the golden-headed
lion tamarin, which is also foraging in the canopy. The coloring
of Wied's marmoset is mostly black, with white markings on cheeks
and forehead. It has rings on its tail and black tufts of fur coming
out of its ears. They are distinguished from the other monkeys of
the New World by their small size, modified claws rather than nails
on all digits except the big toe, the presence of two as opposed
to three molar teeth in either side of each jaw, and by the occurrence
of twin births. Unlike other marmosets, they lives in groups consisting
of 4 or 5 females and 2 or 3 males (plus children). They are matriarchal,
and only the dominant female is allowed to mate. They are highly
social, spending much of their time grooming. They have individually
distinctive calls, and also communicate through gestures and olfactory
markings. The groups defend home ranges 10-40 hectares, the size
depending on availability and distribution of foods and second-growth
patches. They are currently listed as Near Threatened as they are
believed to have experienced a decline in the order of 20-25% over
the past 18 years primarily as a result of habitat loss. They are
also eaten by birds of prey (the harpy eagle, the gray hawk, the
roadside hawk and the white-tailed hawk), felines (the jaguar, jaguarundi
and ocelot) and snakes. Since it is rather adaptable to anthropogenic
disturbance, declines are unlikely to be such that the species would
require listing in a threatened category.
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There are Fellow Travelers and then There
are Fellow Travelers
by
Andrés Castro
I
Ruben choked on his vomit today; had
felt the urge to vomit before; but today
he tilted his head back and guzzled. He
had begun to vomit months ago--a little
at first: barely perceptible squirts attributed
to clams. When trickles turned to mouthfuls
he knew something was truly wrong…so bloody
wrong thoughts of getting to a doctor made him
laugh. What MD could save him now? He knew
vomit was no joke, not to be played with, not
ignored. Rubin remembered a student who
vomited herself to death after a boyfriend
said she was too fat to be his girl. She
wasted away, her eyes black pits,
sitting still in Introduction
to The Romantics
at Penn U.
II
Ruben's friend Jim,
the cook, had drowned
in vomit in his reclining chair.
Had told Ruben and whoever listened
that he dreamed himself an intergalactic traveler
stranded on Earth. Jim grew old saying the human species
was ruled by reptilian aliens enslaving and consuming. Listen,
the colonizers are everywhere! He threw up in the soup
of everyone
he thought collaborator before leaving The Sky High
on the Upper East Side.
III
Ruben's vomiting had begun in the teacher's lounge after
getting news his son
committed suicide--had begged his boy not to enlist--saying
more to fear
from a homegrown racist with a grudge. His son had crowed
he was proud
to be an American--laughed the bitches love medals
on hard Marines!
Ruben went mad with his son's death; all the new lies called
victories
in Afghanistan and Iraq finished him. Epitaph: I learned
too late.
IV
The young teacher that jumped into Ruben's shoes
was straight out of college and a tender heart--did
not complain at all about the smell of vomit, vomit
on the floor, or the crusty yellow stains on his desk.
Told his Principal: sure, the Common Core is a great
idea!
These kids need discipline and middle class values!
Andrés Castro is a PEN member/volunteer and is also listed in the
Directory of Poets and Writers. This poem first appeared in The
Acentos Review. More recently, his work appeared in Pilgrimage,
Counterpunch, New Verse News, and Montreal Serai. He
maintains a blog for new and not so new practicing poets: https://thepracticingpoet.edublogs.org.
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Wied's
Marmoset - Issue Twenty-Nine