The páramo tapir or Andean tapir (Tapirus pinchaque) It is a placental mammal that belongs to the Tapiridae family. In this species its proboscis stands out, which is prehensile and small in size. This is used to drink water, pluck the herbs and leaves and to collect the aquatic plants on which it feeds..
The moorland tapir's skin is thin, but its fur is thick. This protects the animal from the low temperatures that exist in the different environments where it lives. The Andean tapir is an excellent swimmer, climber, and runner. While walking, he usually does so with his muzzle close to the ground.
Regarding its distribution, it lives in the cloud forests and in the páramo of the Andean mountain range, encompassing regions of Colombia, Ecuador and Peru..
The Andean tapir is an animal with solitary habits. However, it can sometimes form small families, consisting of a mother and her young. Occasionally, a couple may be together for a long time..
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The Tapirus pinchaque it is in serious danger of extinction. The IUCN has included it in its red list of species and it is under the regulations of appendix I of CITES.
Its population has notably decreased due to several factors. Previously, the main threat was poaching, but today, habitat fragmentation is the number one problem affecting this species.
The ecosystems where it lives have been cut down and deforested to turn the land into agricultural and livestock settlements. In addition, mining activities pollute water sources.
The legal protection of the páramo tapir is in force in Peru, Colombia and Ecuador. In Colombia there are National Parks, such as Los Nevados and the Cordillera de los Picachos, where this animal is protected.
Since 2007, in Ecuador, research and environmental education projects have been carried out in the Sangay and Llanganates ecological corridor area. Regarding the actions taken in Peru, there is a national plan for the protection of the Andean tapir, which includes various ecological studies in the Cajamarca and Piura regions..
The Andean tapir, in its adult stage, is usually 1.8 meters long and 1 meter high at the shoulder. Generally, the weight varies between 136 and 250 kilograms.
The body of the Tapirus pinchaque it has a rounded back, while it narrows towards the front. This makes it easy to move through the undergrowth. Its tail is small and thick, with only 11 coccygeal vertebrae.
In relation to the extremities, they are thin and short, with four toes on the front legs and three on the back..
The coat is dense and has different lengths, depending on the region of the body where it is found. Thus, in the extremities and in the back it is short and progressively lengthens until it reaches the belly and chest.
In the dorsal region, the body color is usually black or blackish brown. Towards the sides and in the anal area, the tone is lightening, until it reaches a pale-toned belly..
In relation to the cheeks, they are light, generally of an ash gray color. One of its main characteristics is the wide white band that runs the entire length of the lips. The length of the fringe may vary: in some it is only at the corner of the mouth, while in others it may reach the base of the trunk.
The ears also usually have a white border, although some individuals may lack this. When present, it can range from a few spots to a full line. At the base of the pinna, this mammal has long, white or gray hairs.
In relation to the eyes, in the juvenile stage they are blue, a color that darkens as the animal ages. Thus, in its adult stage it can have them dark brown.
The head of the Tapirus pinchaque It has a flat appearance, due to the fact that it has a low sagittal crest, with a convex anterior dorsum. The ears are small, rounded and immobile.
In the moorland tapir, its proboscis stands out, which is short and prehensile. This constitutes an extension of the snout and lips, at the end of which are the nostrils. The area of the nose is glandular and extends from the nostrils to the lower part of the trunk, emerging on the palate.
The incisors have the appearance of a chisel. However, the third of the upper jaw is shaped like a canine and is much longer than the true canine. On the other hand, the lower incisor is reduced. Cheek teeth have transverse cusps and ridges.
In relation to the canines, they are conical and are separated from the premolars by a diastema. The upper canines are smaller than the lower ones.
- Animal Kingdom.
- Subkingdom Bilateria.
- Chordate phylum.
- Vertebrate Subphilum.
- Tetrapoda superclass.
- Mammal class.
- Subclass Theria.
- Infraclass Eutheria.
- Order Perissodactyla.
- Tapiridae family.
- Genus Tapirus.
- Species Tapirus pinchaque.
The Andean tapir lives in the páramo and in the cloud forests of the central and eastern part of the cordilleras in Colombia, in the eastern cordillera of Ecuador and in the northern area of Peru..
Geographical isolation is probably the reason why the T. puncture it does not live in the Western Cordillera of Colombia. As for Peru, this species is located only in Huancabamba, in the department of Cajamarca, and in Ayabaca, located in the department of Piura.
In Ecuador, new records indicate that it is distributed in the western Andes, south of the Sangay National Park and in the Podocarpus National Park.
During times past, this mammal may have spread to Venezuela, but is currently extinct in that country.
The páramo tapir inhabits the humid and cold areas of the Andean mountains, with a range between 1,400 and 4,000 meters above sea level. In this area, there are many species of the genera Hypericum and Polylepis, which form an important part of their diet..
Likewise, it lives in river meadows, chaparrals, montane tropical forests and jalcas, a characteristic ecoregion of the Peruvian Andes. However, due to the abundance of foods that make up its diet, it prefers wooded habitats..
This species prefers those regions where there are bodies of water, since in them they can cool off or escape by swimming, in the case of feeling threatened by a predator. To sleep or rest, they usually do it on the roots of large trees.
Tapirus pinchaque it can carry out an annual migration, caused by the climatic conditions of each season. Thus, during the dry season, they tend to go to the Páramo and in the rainy season they prefer the forests.
Sexual maturity is reached in both sexes between 14 and 48 months of age. Females are polyestric and the duration of the estrous cycle is approximately 30 days..
Mating usually occurs before the start of the rainy season and the young are born early in the rainy season the following year..
During the courtship stage, the female is chased by the male, who bites her and grunts to get her attention. Faced with these vocalizations, the female usually responds with shrieks. Also, males can fight each other for a female..
Before copulating, each member of the couple tries to sniff the other's genitals. This causes them to move in circles; first they do it slowly and then the speed increases. Subsequently, they stop to copulate, at which point the male can bite the female's ears and legs..
After gestation, which can last 13 months, the calf is born. Multiple births are rare in this species.
The young are born weighing approximately 4 to 7 kilograms. Their eyes are open and in no time they can get up and walk. The females take care of them for 18 months, keeping them hidden and defending them from threats. Males do not take an active part in raising the young.
The young of the páramo tapir have a different coloration from that of the adult. They are generally a dark reddish-brown hue, with white and yellow spots and stripes. Also, the fur is thicker, which helps keep them warm. This color pattern is usually lost by six months.
Tapirus pinchaque it is a herbivorous animal, which generally feeds at night. In their diet is a great diversity of plants, such as shrubs, bromeliads, herbs, ferns, lupins and umbrella plants. Also, they consume fruits and aquatic plants.
Of the plant species, it has a preference for eating its branches, young leaves and shoots. Among the families that make up the diet of the Andean tapir are the Asteraceae, Urticaceae, Solanaceae, Fabaceae, Melastomataceae and Gunneraceae.
The páramo tapir is a mammal that usually travels long distances with rugged geography, low temperatures and abundant rainfall. Due to the enormous physical effort that this entails, it requires a constant diet rich in nutrients.
This species uses salty for two possible reasons. The first is to make up for mineral deficiencies, which are not supplemented in your daily diet. The other hypothesis is related to the neutralizing action that clay has on the toxicity of some components of its diet..
The nitrogen found in these "licks" is fixed by a Cyanobacteria associated with Gunnera spp, that is part of the diet of the Andean tapir.
Possibly this animal ingests water rich in sodium to supplement its mineral requirements. Regarding nitrogen, it could be an element in charge of "fertilizing" the microorganisms found in the fermentation chamber..
Tapirus pinchaque it is an important seed disperser in its habitat, a key aspect within the Andean mountain ranges. Also, their feces contribute to enrich the soil of the ecosystem..
A high proportion of viable seeds, which have been consumed by the Andean tapir, pass through post-gastric digestion and manage to germinate successfully, under suitable edaphic and climatic conditions..
Likewise, the leaves do not decompose completely, so the fecal material contributes to the formation of humus..
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