This small, grey-coated marmoset is easily recognizable by its long white mustache and brownish-silver crown.

They live in hierarchical territorial groups of up to 15 individuals, sometimes associated with other species of marmosets. Diurnal and arboreal, they move nimbly over long distances from branch to branch. Each group contains at least two males, and one female mates with all the males in the group.

They reach sexual maturity between 16 and 20 months, and the young depend on their mother for at least three weeks before becoming independent. Males assist in raising the young by carrying them, which they then hand over to their mother for nursing, which lasts for two to three months.