A Global Celebration of Golden Lion Tamarin Conservation
Credit: Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute
Join people around the world in celebrating one of the world’s most striking and endangered primates.
Golden Lion Tamarin (GLT) Day is a special opportunity to raise awareness and take action to protect the GLT (Leontopithecus rosalia) – a vibrant symbol of Brazil’s Atlantic Forest and a global conservation success story in the making. Celebrated each year on August 2nd , this special day was created by Associação Mico-Leão-Dourado (AMLD) in partnership with Save the Golden Lion Tamarin (SGLT) and officially recognized by the Brazilian government in 2018 to honor conservation achievements and inspire public support. Learn how this day began below.
Watch this 1.5-min video highlighting the golden lion tamarin conservation program.
Join the party! Visit GLTs at accredited zoos and aquariums across the world and discover how these institutions contribute to their conservation through education, habitat protection, and breeding programs. Share your visit on social media with #GLTDay2025
Learn something new about GLTs and share it with others and on social media:
Read the GLT Fact Sheet and About GLTs page to understand the basic biology and conservation status of GLTs
Find current information about GLTs on our FAQs page and our 2023 Annual Report
Discover the four different species of lion tamarins and all other Primates living in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest with this Pocket Identification Guide
Learn about growing Trees for GLTs and how to donate to the campaign.
Watch a film about GLT conservation and share the link with others. To help you choose which ones to watch or share, click here to download synopses of all ten films in the playlist.
Calling All Zoos & Aquariums Staff:
Celebrate Golden Lion Tamarin Day by showcasing your GLT exhibits, education programs, and conservation initiatives. Share photos, host talks, and let your visitors know how you’re helping protect this remarkable species. Check out these ideas to inspire your public to protect golden lion tamarins:
Conduct a fundraiser for Trees for GLTs. Download our Trees for GLTs QR code to help your public donate to this campaign. Let us know about your fundraiser at contact@savetheliontamarin.org and we can provide more resources.
Download our collection of GLT Conservation photos to produce your own materials and activities.
Print out and share masks to make and pages to color.
Use problem-solving skills to connect forest fragments and expand the habitat of golden lion tamarins by playing the Tamarin Connections activity
Teach how GLTs inspire people to protect and appreciate nature with the Flagship Species activity.
Make enrichment for GLTs.
Make a GLT Day banner.
Make a GLT Day photo station.
Together, we can ensure a bright future for the golden lion tamarin.
Don’t forget to share your activities on social media with #GLTDay2025
How did our International GLT Day start?
Golden Lion Tamarin Day – August 2, 2016 - download the video!
One of AMLD’s strategies to engage the local community in GLT conservation is to increase pride in the local forest and recognition that GLTs exist nowhere else in the world. On August 2, 2016, Andreia Martins, coordinator of the field team who monitors GLTs, carried the Olympic Flame through the region on its way to the Rio Olympic Games.
With local schools and businesses, AMLD organized a celebration in Silva Jardim, Andreia’s home town, recognizing Andreia and her field team as local heroes. Silva Jardim, is also where the largest population of wild GLTs live, in the federally protected Poço das Antas Biological Reserve and in the forest on private land. The Silva Jardim Municipal Council officially recognized August 2, 2016 as “Dia do Mico-Leão-Dourado” (Golden Lion Tamarin Day). AMLD and SGLT started celebrating International GLT Day the following year on August 2nd, 2017, and have supported GLT fans around the world in celebrating this day ever since.
In 2018, the Brazilian government officially declared August 2 as National Golden Lion Tamarin Day. Learn more about past GLT Day celebrations here.
2017 Brazilian Zoo Society's Year of the Golden Lion Tamarin - click here to download the video!
Produced in 2017 for use in a year-long educational campaign conducted by Brazilian Zoos, this film summarizes the history of golden lion tamarin conservation, current challenges, and conservation action.