Animale
Lowland tapir
A plant-eater of Amazonian forests that carries seeds and moves confidently through water.
Lingua dei contenuti
A short, mobile snout and a bulky body distinguish the lowland tapir, an inhabitant of South American forests. Tapirus terrestris occurs in the Amazon region, including parts of Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela. An adult may weigh several hundred kilograms, yet despite its heavy build it swims and dives well. Water also provides refuge when it escapes a predator.
Its forest menu contains fruit, leaves and young shoots. By eating fruit, a tapir carries and disperses seeds. Its movements link places where food plants grow to other areas of forest. This large herbivore therefore also plays a part in the renewal of vegetation.
Tapirs usually live alone and are mainly active at night. They communicate with sounds including squeals and grunts. Forest loss and hunting threaten wild populations. A broad range on a map of South America does not mean that safe, connected habitats survive everywhere within it. At this stop, swimming skills and plant food are as important to the animal's story as the distinctive shape of its snout.
Per bambini
A tapir has a short, mobile snout and a heavy body. Although it looks bulky, it can swim and dive well. Its wild relatives live in South American forests, including the Amazon. Water can provide a place to escape from a predator.
For food, a tapir chooses fruit, leaves and young shoots. It swallows seeds with the fruit, and those seeds may later reach another part of the forest. In this way a large animal helps spread plants. It usually travels alone and is active at night. It can squeal and grunt, so its voice need not sound as heavy as its body looks. Forests give tapirs both a home and food. When forest disappears or becomes fragmented, wild tapirs have a harder time finding safe habitat.
Domanda 1 di 2
How does a tapir contribute to forest renewal?
- Posizione
- Tapir enclosure, stop 21 on the map.