Golden-headed Lion Tamarin

Open encyclopedia reference

The golden-headed lion tamarin (Leontopithecus chrysomelas), also the golden-headed tamarin, is a lion tamarin endemic to Brazil. It is found only in the lowland and premontane tropical forest fragments in the state of Bahia, and therefore is considered to be an endangered species. It lives at heights of 3–10 metres (9.8–32.8 ft). Its preferred habitat is within mature forest, but with habitat destruction this is not always the case. Several sources seem to have different information on the number of individuals within a group, and the type of social system that may be apparent. The golden-headed lion tamarin lives within group sizes ranging from 2 to 11 individuals, with the average size ranging from 4 to 7. According to various sources, the group may consist of two adult males, one adult female, and any immature individuals, one male and one female and any immature individuals, or there may be one producing pair and a varying number of other group members, usually offspring from previous generations.

Wikipedia contributors, Golden-headed lion tamarin; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T11:27:14.758475+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Leontopithecus chrysomelas (Kuhl, 1820)

Name authority

(Kuhl, 1820)

Common name

Golden-headed Lion Tamarin

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Mammalia

Order

Primates

Family

Callitrichidae

Genus

Leontopithecus

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
9. subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
10. infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
11. orderPrimates Linnaeus, 1758
12. suborderHaplorrhini Pocock, 1918
13. infraorderSimiiformes Haeckel, 1866
14. familyCallitrichidae Gray, 1821
15. genusLeontopithecus Lesson, 1840
16. speciesLeontopithecus chrysomelas (Kuhl, 1820)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Leontopithecus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 45 records assigned to Callitrichidae.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=572919 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:3T6ZR. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.