CAPYBARA

The 'capybara' (also 'capibara'), ''Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris'' ("Water pig") is a semi-aquatic herbivorous animal. It is the world's largest living rodent.^[1] It is endemic to most of the tropical and temperate parts of South America east of the Andes, and has been introduced to north-central Florida and possibly other subtropical regions in the United States. It is the only living member of the family ''Hydrochoeridae''. Some scientists consider a dwarf race, ''Hydrochoerus isthmius'', to be a valid species. The Panama or Panamanian Dwarf Capybara has a range restricted to northwest Venezuela, Colombia, and into Panama. It is about half the size of a normal capybara.
The animal is also called '''capivara''' in Portuguese, and '''carpincho''', '''ronsoco''', '''chigüiro''', or '''chigüire''' in Spanish. The name originally derives from Tupi '''kaapĩ ûara''' ("grass eater") or possibly from the Guarani word '''kapiÿva''', meaning roughly "master of the grasses". In English, it is also sometimes called 'Water Hog' (which is also the literal translation of its species name). Chigüire is used extensively in Venezuela.

Contents

Description and habits

Economic and ecological aspects

Hunting

As pets

See also

Notes

External links

Description and habits

Full-grown capybaras reach 105 to 135 cm (40 to 55 inches) in length, and weigh 35 to 65 kg (75 to 140 lbs). Except for their large size, they resemble guinea pigs. They are excellent swimmers, and have partially webbed feet. Their front legs have four fingers and hind legs have three.
Capybaras spend most of their life in water: they mate in the water, use water to hide from and elude predators (chiefly anacondas, pumas, caimans, jaguars and humans), and can stay submerged for several minutes. They can even sleep underwater by leaving their noses exposed to the air.
Capybaras are largely herd animals, although they are also seen in pairs or alone. Males have a gland on their noses which exudes a liquid pheromone. In the mating season, they rub this gland on surrounding foliage to attract females. They spend most of their time on river banks, feeding in the mornings and evenings. The diet consists of vegetation such as river plants and bark.
The young are noticeably lighter colored than adults.

Economic and ecological aspects

Hunting

In the regions along the Paraná river in Southern Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Northern Argentina, Southeast Colombia, Venezuela, and Uruguay, capybaras are occasionally hunted for food and for their leather. The flesh is described as tasting like pork and has a similar whitish appearance. Hunters preferably use small caliber rifles, but when these semi-aquatic rodents flee to the water they are often forced to use more primitive methods such as steel pipes and harpoons.
Venezuelan farmers who once considered the animal a pest now make a valuable addition to their incomes by selling capybara meat (approximately 400 metric tons annually). The rodents are rounded up in February so that they can be slaughtered and sold just before the onset of Lent, when the meat is in high demand. In restaurants in Venezuela it is possible, though not common, that chigüire/capybara would appear on the menu year around. It is often served shredded in a sauce, similar to a pulled pork sandwich in the United States.
The popularity of capybara meat in Venezuela is attributable to a 16th century theological decision by the Roman Catholic Church, in response to queries by Venezuelan Catholics, that capybara meat is equivalent to fish meat for the purposes of Lent, and its consumption is thus allowed during that time [1][2]. The decision may have been taken on the basis of incomplete or inaccurate descriptions of the capybara available to the Church authorities in Rome. But this decision was never reversed, and to this day the capybara is the only warm-blooded animal with this status. (This story should be treated with caution, since similar claims have been circulated concerning other semi-aquatic mammals, such as beavers and muskrats[3].)

As pets

Capybaras are often kept for decorative purposes in public parks, farms, and tourist resorts that have access to suitable water bodies. The animals are usually allowed to roam freely. They adapt easily to human presence and allow themselves to be petted and hand-fed.
However, in Southeast Brazil (states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Minas Gerais) this custom has caused trouble recently, when capybaras were found to be in a reservoir for Rocky Mountain spotted fever. This disease can be transmitted to humans by the Cayenne tick (''Amblyomma cajennense''), a common parasite of many animals including capybaras and humans. Responding to pressure from health authorities and public opinion, many public places in those states have eliminated the capybaras they once kept.

See also

★ ''Neochoerus pinckneyi'', an extinct North American capybara

★ Nutria

★ Patagonian cavy

★ ''Phoberomys pattersoni'', an even larger extinct rodent

Notes

1. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/21/world/americas/21rodent.html?em&ex=1174622400&en=fe077144d0c757c6&ei=5070

External links

★ Information on the Capybara

★ Capybara information

★ The Capybara Page