Hearts (and Tails) Intertwined

 As I've confessed earlier on this blog, I'm really not a primate person - but I will always have a special soft spot in my heart for the titi monkeys.  Part of it is that they are, just by nature, so much calmer and sweeter than many other monkeys.  But part of it is the tail-twining behavior.  I saw it in the pair that I worked with, but was never able to get a good photo of it.  Here's a picture from the website of the Cape May County Zoo, just to give you an idea of how endearing it is:

Some animals play the field and are very promiscuous, whereas others are monogamous.  And among those that are monogamous, sometimes you encounter species in which the mutual affection is just so poignant, so obvious, that it makes you melt a little bit.  It also on some level breaks your heart, because you know that, barring some sudden disaster, one of the animals is inevitably going to outlive the other, and then it will be alone, and that just seems horrifically unfair.

The female of the titi pair that I worked with passed away unexpectedly, leaving her mate not only crushed, but also saddled with care for their newborn infant - who also passed away, despite our best efforts to save him.  We worked very quickly to get that male placed at another zoo, partially so he could have a new mate as soon as possible (but in some level because I think we would just have cried all day looking at him).  Years later, I visited him in his new home, and was delighted to see that he was happily re-paired, with a new mate and offspring.