Black-capped Squirrel Monkey (London Zoo)

Large ("L").
Saimiri boliviensis.

I visited ZSL London Zoo today; choosing my blip has been more than slightly tricky! I first narrowed it down by deciding that I wanted to blip a squirrel monkey: they are so ridiculously cute, and I so very almost blipped one last time I went to the zoo, but it just missed out to the Emperor Tamarin I chose for the story surrounding the image...

So, today it had to be a squirrel monkey; that narrowed it down to 29 possible pictures... Given that I was so taken by their cuteness, I decided not to go on photographic merit, but to choose simply on CCQ (Captured Cuteness Quotient).
So here they are: my cutest pictures. I've put this one on Blip because it could most benefit from being seen "large", but the cutest one is actually on Blipfolio here.

I almost can't bear how cute they are... Their tails are so ridiculously long, and their eyes so large, closely spaced, and dark. They're actually very small: the body is smaller than that of a typical domestic cat, with the tail very much longer in proportion... The ones in the zoo wear necklaces for identification: they have different coloured beads depending on how old they are. The youngest ones don't wear necklaces until they stop growing, and all of them pull off easily to prevent snagging injuries.

p.s. Tail not photoshopped...
p.p.s The zoo was looking fantastic: the enclosures and animals look very well looked after, and it didn't seem at all depressing! I saw so many beautiful creatures... Highlights included the butterflies and moths, pelicans and flamingoes, tropical birds (including a hummingbird that hovered about a foot in front of my face while sipping nectar, and then perched on a branch to sing a quiet little tune to itself), penguins (!), and small primates (including these monkeys, and the tamarins in the "Rainforest Life" enclosure).