Assessment of preference for grid-flooring and sawdust-flooring by captive-bred marmosets in free-standing cages

Abstract Marmosets ( Callithrix jacchus ) in a captive breeding colony living in metal caging, with wooden shelves and perches, were assessed by video recording for the time spent on the floor of the cage when that floor was a wire grid above a sawdust-filled tray and when it had been changed to a sawdust-filled tray several days previously. Quantitative analysis of these videos indicated that marmosets made more visits to the floor when it comprised a wire grid than when it comprised a sawdust-filled tray. They also tended to spend more time on the floor when the floor was a wire grid. These results suggest that this arboreal species does not necessarily share the need or preference for contact with a particle-covered solid floor which might be considered appropriate for a terrestrial species.