The capybara is the world's largest
extant rodent, native to
Central and
South America (from
Panama to northern
Argentina). They are about two feet tall at the shoulder, three to four feet long and can weigh up to 100 pounds. Their scientific name (
Hydrochoerus hydrochoerus), from the
latin meaning 'water pig', is particularly descriptive. The common name, capybara, is from the language of the
Guarani and means 'Master of the grasses'.
General biology and behaviour
Capybaras live near and in the water, and have evolved partially
webbed feet to help them swim. It is so comfortable in the water that capybaras have even been observed to
sleep while in the water, with only their noses breaking the surface of the water. They feed on aquatic and shoreline
vegetation, particularly
grasses. They will also feed upon
fruits when they are available.
Capybaras are not sexually dimorphic, and the only way to differentiate a male from a female is by the presence of teats or morillos, their scent glands (which are more prominent in the males). These scent glands are located on the snout, and these animals use the morrillo, along with their anal scent glands, to mark their territories.
They are social animals, and continually communicate with one another by purring and grunting. They tend to remain in small groups of about 10 animals. These groups are of mixed sex, and young males (who are solitary) often expend considerable effort to join with established groups in order to have a chance to reproduce.
Copulation takes place, like most of the animals' life, in the water. Gestation time is roughly 150 days, and prior to giving birth the female will separate from the social group. Females give birth to, on average, four pups. After three or four days, the young and the mother rejoin the social group. Very quickly, the young begin to feed on grass, and will continue to suckle for months. Interestingly enough, the young will suckle from any lactating female, not just their mother. Young grow quickly, reaching sexual maturity in 15 months.
The capybara is an important food resource for many large predators in South America. The young are eaten by vultures, wild dogs, caimans, foxes, anacondas, ocelots and jaguars. The caiman, anaconda and jaguar will also hunt adult capybaras. When a predator is detected, the adults will bark a warning to one another, and rush into the water. Once in the water, the adults gather into a circle, facing out and the young are herded into the center. This behaviour is similar to that of the musk ox.
Conservation status
The capybara, as most rodents, reproduce very rapidly and thus are generally not easily
extirpated. However, they do rely on forested areas with clean water for their survival, and thus
habitat destruction takes its toll. Despite this, the capybara is considered to be in very good shape as a species; it is not classified by
CITES or the
IUCN as being threatened.
Importance to humans
The capybara is
consumed by the local populations in South America. Their flesh is a
white meat similar to
pork, and people have tried to produce
sausages and chops, but the most popular mode of consumption is dried or salted. In
Venezuela more than 400
tons are sold annually (as of 1991). There is some interest in trying to raise the animals for food, especially given their
tame nature. Even more attractive is the fact that while capybaras and
cattle share a food resource, they do not overlap in space as the capybaras must remain in or near the water. Thus some ranchers are experimenting with the idea of raising the two species together. An added benefit is the fact that the
pelt of the capybara is also
marketed in South America.
Given their tame character, capybaras are also kept as pets. In fact, if you search online, you can surely find web sites advertising companies which will sell you your very own giant rodent.
Taxonomy
Order:
Rodentia
Infraorder: Hystricomorpha
Family: Hydrochoeridae
Genus:
Hydrochoerus
Species: hydrochoerus
The capybara is the only living species of the family
Hydrochoeridae, but historically there were even larger members of the species.
Information culled from, among other places, ...
* http://www.rebsig.com/capybara/
* http://www.wildchannel.com/features/capy2.htm
* http://www.bio.davidson.edu/people/vecase/Behavior/Spring2002/willoughby/farm.html
* http://www.k12.de.us/warner/capybara.htm