Funny Animals - The Capybara
The Capybara is the biggest rodent alive today. This animal is
related to the guinea pig, chinchilla, agouti, and coyphilla.
The common
name for the Capybara actually literally means 'master of the grasses'.
It scientific name in Greek literally means 'water hog'.
The Capybara can grow up to 4.3 feet as an adult. It can weigh as
much as 140 lbs. That is a huge rodent!
The Capybara has a barrel shaped
body and a short head.
On the upper part of its body, it has reddish
brown fur that turns into yellowish brown fur underneath the body. This
animal does not have a tail and it has feet that are slightly webbed.
The Capybara has 20 teeth. The muzzle of this animal is blunt and it has
ears, nostrils, and eyes on the top of the head. Males are a little less
in weight than the females.
The Capybara is found in many areas in South America. Some of the
countries in South American where this animal is found includes
Columbia, Bolivia, Panama, Argentina, and Brazil. They are semi aquatic
animals that usually reside in areas that are dense forest areas near
water like swamps, rivers and lakes. The Capybara usually roam in areas
of 25 - 50 acres.
The Capybara feeds mainly on plants and grass. They will also feed on
tree bark and fruit. An adult can eat between 6 - 8 pounds of grass each
day. Because of the structure of their jaw, they chew their food by
grinding back and forth instead of side to side.
Another feature of this
animal is they eat their own feces in order to help digest part of the
grass that they eat.
The Capybara is a social animal that usually travels in groups that
typically range between 10 - 30 animals. They are definitely social
animals. The group is usually led by a dominant male. These animals
communicate through a series of both sound and scent. They give off a
variety of sounds, including grunts, squeals, purrs and alarm barks.
They are quite adept at swimming and can stay underwater for up to five
minutes at a time.
It is interesting that the Capybara has the ability
to sleep underwater by keeping its nose just above the water.
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