Ecuador’s Siekopai people and scientists seek tiny monkey
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In Ecuador, conservationists are working with the Siekopai people to find pygmy marmosets, the world’s smallest monkey. Nicolás Schuldt Durán of Neblina Labs approached the Siekopai community to combine their traditional knowledge of the Amazon rainforest with passive acoustic monitoring technology.
The Siekopai people already monitor their territory for illegal activity using camera traps, and this project adds biodiversity monitoring to their efforts.
Pygmy marmosets weigh between 140 and 150 grams and live high in the trees of the western Amazon Basin. Because these monkeys are sensitive to forest disturbance and rely on tree gum and sap for food, their presence indicates forest health. However, visually tracking them is difficult due to their size and habitat. Durán and community members recently completed a pilot project using microphones placed in trees identified by the Siekopai as likely marmoset habitat.
While they didn’t record the monkeys’ calls during the 72-hour test, the team gathered data on other species and created models for future detection. They plan to continue searching, deploying recorders for longer periods and identifying other indicators of forest health.
