Baird’s Tapir is a species of tapir that
is native to Central America and northern South America. Baird’s Tapir
is named for the American naturalist Spencer Fullerton Baird who
traveled to Mexico in 1843 and observed the animals. However, the
species was first documented by another American naturalist, W. T.
White. Tapir is the largest land mammal in Central America.
The Baird's Tapir can be identified by the fact that this species of tapir has a cream coloured
marking on it's face. The skin of the Baird's Tapir commands a very
high price. Leather hunting and deforestation has caused their numbers
to drop by less than half. Baird’s Tapir may be active at all hours, but
is primarily nocturnal. It forages for leaves and fallen fruit, using
well-worn tapir paths which zig-zag through the thick undergrowth of the
forest.
It generally leads a solitary
life, though feeding groups are not uncommon and individuals,
especially those of different ages (young with their mothers, juveniles
with adults) are often observed together. The animals communicate with
one another through shrill whistles and squeaks. Baby Tapirs spend a
long time in their mother's stomach, and are born only one offspring at a
time. Their slow birth rate makes it difficult for their numbers to
recover once it declines.
The Baird's Tapir is
losing its home as people cut down the trees in the forests where it
lives. Deforestation changes the shape of ponds and swamps, rendering
water bodies that were once safe unsafe. On top of that, the increase in
grasslands near their habitat has infected some Baird's Tapir with a
contagious diseases carried by domesticated horses. The number of
Baird's Tapir is said to have diminished to less than half over the last
30 years. Source
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