Marlee is a common marmoset, although there is nothing common about this little girl! She arrived at Jungle Friends on April 5, 2009 when she was not quite a year old.

Marlee was sold into the exotic pet trade and purchased by well-meaning, but misguided, people who only wanted a friend for their 2-year-old ‘pet’ marmoset. They thought a female would be the best option so they would not breed; however, they did not realize that female marmosets typically do not get along with each other! These two girls disliked each other from day one. Knowing this was not going to work in Marlee’s favor, her guardian wanted her to be somewhere that she will feel free and be with others of her own kind.

Marlee is probably the most vocal marmoset here at the sanctuary, screaming at everyone, humans and marmosets alike, upon her arrival. Thank goodness, that didn’t last! In just a couple of days she was making sweet marmoset sounds to the other monkeys in Marmoset Village, and she stopped screaming at the humans too!

Marlee is quite the acrobat, always swinging from her toys or scampering down her long runway to her outdoor habitat to pounce on an unsuspecting bug.