Kaplin Rose is the most famous capybara in the world. A photo of an animal living in Texas constantly falls on the front pages of magazines devoted to the life of animals. The reason for this success lies in the appearance of Kaplin Rose. She is very cute and funny, which captivates others at first sight.
In truth, these traits are common to all capybaras. However, unlike the Texas darling, wild animals are forced to independently take care of themselves and their offspring. But this makes their life even more exciting and interesting for those around them.
A brief look at the capybara
Capybara is a unique semi-aquatic herbivorous mammal from the family of capybaras. Its peculiarity is that only one single representative of the family has survived to this day. All the others, alas, could not resist climate change and became extinct hundreds of thousands of years ago.
Capybara is also noteworthy in that it is the largest representative of the order of rodents that live on our planet. So, some individuals of this species can grow up to 1.2, and even 1.5 m in length, which is quite comparable with the growth of a small person. And this is not all that this amazing beast can boast of. But let's talk about everything in order.
Beast from the tropics
Capybara is a rodent that lives only in Central and South America. This is their historical homeland. Only at the end of the 20th century, animals began to be actively exported outside of these lands in order to form new colonies. For the most part, this was necessary for farmers who saw financial benefits in breeding giant rodents.
In nature, the capybara lives near rivers and lakes, since without water it can not survive. She tries to avoid open space, therefore, prefers to settle under the cover of a rainforest. However, for a long time the rodent does not remain in one place - it constantly migrates along the beloved reservoir.
Appearance
Capybara - an animal that has dimensions inspiring for a rodent. So, adults grow on average up to 1.2 m in length. Moreover, their weight ranges from 40-60 kilograms. It is curious that females are larger than males and can easily surpass them in brute force.
At first glance, the capybara is somewhat reminiscent of a guinea pig, just painfully fed. Small plump legs look rather awkward against the background of a massive body. The head of the beast is oval, with a blunt muzzle at the end. The eyes are wide set, which allows the capybara to view the terrain well.
The coat is stiff, depending on the season it can change its length. So, on hot days, the rodent molts, and with the onset of the rainy season, it again acquires a fur coat. As for color, most capybaras are brown or dark gray. However, sometimes there are individuals whose fur shimmers with a copper or even red tint.
What does capybara eat?
Capybara is a herbivore. The basis of her diet is young grass, berries, roots and aquatic plants. By the way, the latter are the greatest delicacy for capybaras. In particular, that is why capybaras love to settle near water. After all, it is there that they can enjoy plenty of fresh food.
It also happens that a herd of capybaras can ruin a farmer’s garden. But they do this not out of malice, but because a person is getting closer and closer to their lands. That's just most people do not understand this. Seeing the mess in their field, they always go to avenge the wrecking pests. And then the poor rodents risk being left without a good half of their brood.
Unquenchable love of water
As mentioned earlier, a capybara is a beast that adores water. Therefore, it is not surprising that he spends most of his time near a reservoir. Here he rests, obtains food, frolics and even hides from enemies. Fortunately, evolution took care of them, and capybaras feel very comfortable in such an environment.
So, at the end of their legs there are special membranes. They allow capybaras to develop greater speed under water. Their lungs interfere with a large supply of oxygen, so capybaras can last at a depth of several minutes. And high-set eyes allow animals to observe from under the water, not giving out their location to the enemies.
Habits and hierarchy within the pack
Capybara is a herd of animals. Often, these rodents are combined into small groups of 10-15 individuals. But it also happens that animals establish much larger colonies. This happens during periods of drought when most of the shallow water sources dry out. Then the capybaras have to crowd near those reservoirs that are at least somehow able to feed them.
Such a neighborhood often leads to conflict situations. After all, male capybaras zealously guard their family. Therefore, inside large colonies there are conditional boundaries dividing the flocks into separate social cells. And so that everyone knows their place, the controlled territory is indicated by discharge from the odorous glands.
At the head of each group is a male leader. His orders and decisions are “non-negotiable, ” especially by other males. He has the right to freely choose females for mating, which guarantees him the continuation of the genus. The rest have to be content with what they have, otherwise they may even be expelled from the herd.
Mating season
Capybaras do not have a specific cycle in which they mate. It all depends on how long the females brought the offspring. Therefore, as soon as the body of the ladies is ready for a new conception, the mating season begins in rodents. True, intense heat or lack of a constant source of food can delay this process for a longer period.
The "right of the first night" always remains with the leader of the pack. In this case, he can mate with all the females in his group. But since there are often a lot of them, other gentlemen also get an unoccupied partner. It is curious that the process of fusion in capybaras occurs only in water. Therefore, if there is no decent pond nearby, then the males will not have “intimacy”.
Natural enemies
The main enemy of capybaras are jaguars and wild dogs. They constantly chase poor rodents, as they are easy prey. Also, small capybaras should be wary of the Urubu and Anaconda vultures living in the hot tropics. And, of course, alligators are a big threat to these animals.
