My newest painting “Gold Mane” is a sister painting to my earlier “Fire Mane.” The subject of my artwork is a Golden Lion Tamarin, a subspecies of the tamarin family. These lively monkeys share the same characteristics as their cousins, but their lives are in the same amount of peril. The majority of tamarins live in Brazil in the canopies of dense rainforests. They all used to live in one area, but because of deforestation they have been cruelly split into seventeen different populations. More than 90% of the original Atlantic coastal forest habitat has been lost or fragmented to obtain lumber and charcoal and to clear out areas for plantations, cattle pasture, and development. Capture for zoos and private collections also contributed to its decline in the past. The golden lion tamarin is still under severe threat form continued deforestation, much of which is undertaken to create weekend beach properties. Less than 2% of the forest remains in the region where the gold lion tamarin lives. The fight to save the rainforests has always been a hard battle, but some day we will succeed. “Gold Mane” 16x20 inch canvas. Acrylic. © Cara Bevan