Small Mammals
Mammals vary in size from the 100-foot-long blue whale to the two-gram bumblebee bat, one of the world's most endangered species. Most mammals measure less than one foot (including the head and body). That makes small mammals far more common, if less well known, than large mammals like elephants, tigers, and people.
Small mammals cut across categories. Most species are rodents (such as the naked mole-rat), insectivores, and bats, but there are also carnivores (such as slender-tailed meerkats), and primates (such as golden lion tamarins and lemurs).
Sand Cat Debut
A 7-year-old sand cat named Thor is the newest addition to the Smithsonian's National Zoo's Small Mammal House exhibit. 
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Study Finds Baby Marmosets More Likely to Become Obese if Transition to Solid Food Faster
Companion study finds young obese monkeys more likely to have pancreas problems. more
The camera aimed on the sloth bears' large indoor enclosure was funded by a generous grant from the Smithsonian Women's Committee.
North America Photo Gallery |
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Watching a black-footed ferret:
You are viewing a black-footed ferret nest box at the Zoo’s Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia, where ferrets are bred to be saved from extinction. This female ferret, Vicki was born at SCBI last year and had six kits on June 1. (Rosebud, the female on the cam previously, has been determined not to be pregnant.)
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Golden Lion Tamarin Cam
Naked Mole-rat
Mammal Mystery
Family members of this species greet with what looks like a kiss. They're not really kissing, but gently touching their front teeth together. What animals recognize each other this way?
Golden Lion Tamarin Conservation Program
For more than 30 years, this program has been saving these small monkeys through conservation breeding and reintroduction to their natural habitat in Brazil. Thanks to the success of the program, the status of GLTs was downgraded from "critically endangered" to "endangered" by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) in 2003. more
