The marsupilami is a black-spotted yellow monkey-like creature of which some specimens are known to have a form of melanism, causing them to resemble black panthers, meanwhile other marsupilamis lack spots altogether. The young of the main couple are a good example of how marsupilamis exhibit these different traits: female Bibi has spots, male Bibu does not, while the other male, Bobo, has black fur.

Disney's version of the marsupilami first appeared on television in Raw Toonage in 1992, and was then spun off into his own eponymous show on the CBS network. Marsupilami's supporting characters included Maurice the Gorilla, Stuie the Elephant, Eduardo the Jaguar, Norman the Poacher, and other characters. The original Marsupilami stories by Franquin never encountered a gorilla or elephant, since these species are native to Africa, while the marsupilami originates from South America.

There were thirteen episodes in the series, and the series lasted one season. Reruns of the show were aired on both Disney Channel and Toon Disney.