They are extremely, extremely cute. The capybara inhabits savannas and dense forests and lives near bodies of water. [32] Capybara groups can consist of as many as 50 or 100 individuals during the dry season[28][33] when the animals gather around available water sources. [36] The lifespan of the capybara's sperm is longer than that of other rodents. Capybaras are edible and in Venezuela are ranched for meat. Their favorite food are the crabs that they find in the mud during the rainy season. [46] Capybaras became big in Japan due to the popular cartoon character Kapibara-san. [11] The fossil genera Cardiatherium, Phugatherium, Hydrochoeropsis, and Neochoerus are all capybaras under that concept. This capybara predator is even strong enough to carry a large capybara in its beak!eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'factsking_com-leader-1','ezslot_5',132,'0','0'])); The crab-eating fox, or forest fox, is another threat to the young capybaras. Because of this, jaguars are the biggest predators of capybara.eval(ez_write_tag([[300,250],'factsking_com-medrectangle-3','ezslot_2',127,'0','0'])); Pumas are also known as the South American cougar or mountain lion. They kill by biting the animal on the back of its neck. [9] In one instance, material once referred to four genera and seven species on the basis of differences in molar shape is now thought to represent differently aged individuals of a single species, Cardiatherium paranense. Class: Mammalia (mammals) Order: [36] The larger the group, the harder it is for the male to watch all the females. This loveable creature is the largest rodent in the world, growing to a size of up to 134cm and weighing up to 66kg. Their sharp teeth and powerful jaws enable them to pierce the thick skull of their prey. [29], They can have a lifespan of 8–10 years,[30] but live less than four years in the wild due to predation from jaguars, pumas, ocelots, eagles, and caimans. Its closest relations are other big rodents like agouti, chinchilla and guinea pigs. [44], The image of a capybara features on the 2-peso coin of Uruguay. This is bad news for the capybara because these constrictors can swallow a whole, adult capybara in one go! Beavers another large rodent have predators such as wolves and wolverines. The capybara, native to South America, is the largest rodent in the world and a highly social creature which has been observed bonding with everything from kittens and ducklings to monkeys. The Capy… Then, using their powerful jaws, they can drag these heavy animals to their lair. Even predators like crocodiles! This provides the perfect camouflage for hiding in the tall grasses and stalking prey. Predators of the capybara include jaguars, anacondas, caimans, pumas, ocelots, and harpy eagles. It is helpful to have many sets of eyes watching out for the youngsters, since they can easily fall victim to caimans, ocelots, harpy eagles, and anacondas. The scientific name, both hydrochoerus and hydrochaeris, comes from Greek ὕδωρ (hydro "water") and χοῖρος (choiros "pig, hog"). They can have a lifespan of 8–10 years, but live less than four years in the wild due to predation from jaguars, pumas, ocelots, eagles, and caimans. Our capybara live with our squirrel monkeys in The Rainforest. Wikipedia® is een geregistreerd handelsmerk van de Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., een organisatie zonder winstoogmerk. The IUCN lists capybaras as a species of least concern, citing its large population, large distribution, and frequent occurrence within protected areas. Here is plenty of their favourite food such as grass, fruit, and water plants. Capybaras have heavy, barrel-shaped bodies a… Wildcats including Jaguars, Pumas and Ocelots are the primary predators of the Capybara along with Caimans and Eagles that can hunt the younger ones from the sky above. They are one of the most-favorite foods of Anaconda along with other species of big snakes. They are seen as an attraction by Japanese people. [27] Capybaras are autocoprophagous, meaning they eat their own feces as a source of bacterial gut flora, to help digest the cellulose in the grass that forms their normal diet, and to extract the maximum protein and vitamins from their food. Though quite agile on land, capybaras are equally at home in the water. Another threat comes from the trees. This is the reason why they are a threat to young capybara. Capybaras are one of their favorite foods and, because jaguars are good swimmers, they can also catch them in the lakes and rivers. Capybaras are also hunted down by humans for their meat along with the pricey … Capybara live near wetlands, rivers and lakes. Capybaras have webbed toes which enables them to be excellent swimmers. Their survival is aided by their ability to breed rapidly. [35] Both sexes have these glands, but males have much larger morrillos and use their anal glands more frequently. The female bears a single litter of three to eight young each year; gestation takes about 100 to 110 days. [21] These escaped populations occur in areas where prehistoric capybaras inhabited; late Pleistocene capybaras inhabited Florida[22] and Hydrochoerus gaylordi in Grenada. T… I hope that this article on capybara predators was helpful! One of the reasons is because of how relaxed the capybara is. Who are they… Predators of capybara. [9][10] This is largely due to the recognition that capybara molar teeth show strong variation in shape over the life of an individual. For this reason, it was worshipped as a god by people in ancient times. [19], Capybaras have adapted well to urbanization in South America. After that, it stretches its huge jaw and slowly swallows the animal. Adult capybaras have one main natural predatorthe jaguarbut humans hunt them as well. The capybara's life span in the wild is about 8-10 years, but when in the zoo their life span is about 12 years. 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