Characteristics
Tapirs look much like pigs but with trunks. They are actually related to horses and rhinoceroses. Tapirs are excellent swimmers and are mammals. They are herbivores and in the wild, their average lifespan is about 25 to 30 years. As being a mammal, they give birth to live young, and the gestation takes around 13 months, giving birth to one calf at a time. Their size varies from 74 to 107 cm and their weight varies from 227 to 363kg. Tapirs protection status is endangered. There are four types of tapirs: the mountain tapir, the lowland tapir, Bairdii’s Tapir and the Malayan tapir. Tapirs are very interesting animals and the mountain tapir is also known as the woolly tapir. They have a long trunk but it’s really just an extended nose and upper lip which is called a proboscis. They use it to grab branches and to clean themselves. They live near the water and get in to cool off. |