A PAIR of golden-headed lion tamarins have been born at Shaldon Zoo to parents Pepe and Aurora.

Guess their name and you could win a family ticket that you can use up to the end of the year in our Tamarin Twins Competition in this week’s Mid-Devon Advertiser.

At the moment these two are just too small for the zoo to tell if they’re boys or girls so try to pick names that would be most suitable. If the correct names are not guessed, zoo staff will pick their favourite names as the winner anyway. These latest arrivals round off a fantastic year of animal births at the zoo including a red-ruffed lemur, squirrel monkey, cotton-top tamarin and more.

The first-time parents are coping well but have their hands full.

Zak Showell, director, said: ‘We’re so proud of them both, they’re doing fantastically well and are now getting brave enough to take the babies outside for the public to see them.’

Pepe arrived from Parc Animalier des Pyrenees back in 2018 with Aurora joining in March 2019. They were put together as part of the breeding programme which aims to stop animals going extinct.

Zak also said: ‘What makes the birth even more special is that Aurora was very unwell in January and through the hard work of the team and our vet we saved Aurora and now have two of the cutest little babies to show for all our efforts.’

Golden-headed lion tamarins are native to Brazil, found only in a small part of the east coast. They are threatened with extinction through deforestation and habitat change for ranching and urban developments.

Use the competition entry voucher in this week’s Mid-Devon Advertiser and you could enjoy a family visit to the zoo for up to four people.