A baby Emperor Tamarin born on November 3 at Great Britain’s Blackpool Zoo is too young to sport an impressive moustache like her parents, but if you look closely at the photo, you’ll see that she already has a little “stubble” on each side of her nose!

Why do Emperor Tamarins have moustaches? No one knows for certain, but the bright white facial hair may aid communication among groups of these tiny monkeys. 

Tamarins are among the smallest of all monkeys – they’re about the size of squirrels and weigh only about one pound. Emperor Tamarins are native to the rain forests of western Brazil, eastern Peru, and northern Bolivia in the Amazon Basin.  At this time, the species is plentiful in the wild.

Photo Credit:  Jay Mayne