Collared Peccary
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Collared Peccary | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||||||||||||
| Conservation status | ||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||
| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||
| Pecari tajacu (Linnaeus, 1758) |
||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||
| Synonyms | ||||||||||||||
|
Tayassu tajacu |
The Collared Peccary (Pecari tajacu) is a species of mammal in the family Tayassuidae that is found in North, Central, and South America. They are commonly referred to as javelina, although this term is also used to describe other species in the family. The species is also known as the musk hog and Mexican hog, but is no longer classified in the family Suidae.
Contents |
[edit] Description
[edit] Range and habitat
The Collared Peccary can be found throughout much of the tropical and subtropical Americas, ranging from the Southwestern United States to northern Argentina in South America. The only Caribbean island it is native to is Trinidad, although introduced populations exist in Cuba. It inhabits deserts and xeric shrublands, tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands, flooded grasslands and savannas, mangrove swamps, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical coniferous forests and tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests. The Collared Peccary is well adapted to habitat disturbed by humans, merely requiring sufficient cover; they can be found in cities and agricultural land throughout their range. Notable populations exist in the suburbs of Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona.[2][3]
[edit] Diet
Collared Peccaries feed on fruits, roots, tubers, palm nuts, grasses, invertebrates and small vertebrates. In areas inhabited by humans, they will consume cultivated crops and ornamental plants such as tulip bulbs.[2][3]
[edit] Behavior
Collared peccaries are diurnal and live in groups of 1 to 20 individuals, usually 6 to 9. They frequently sleep at night in burrows, often under the roots of trees.
They will defend themselves if they feel threatened but otherwise tend to ignore human beings. They defend themselves with their long tusks, which sharpen themselves whenever their mouths open or close. Collared Peccaries will release a strong musk if alarmed.
[edit] References
- ^ Beck, H., Taber, A., Altrichter, M., Keuroghlian, A. & Reyna, R. (2008). Pecari tajacu. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2008. Retrieved on April 2009. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is of least concern.
- ^ a b Friederici, Peter (August/September 1998). "Winners and Losers". National Wildlife Magazine (National Wildlife Federation) 36 (5). http://www.nationalwildlife.org/nationalwildlife/article.cfm?articleID=308&issueID=19.
- ^ a b Sowls, Lyle K. (1997). Javelinas and Other Peccaries: Their Biology, Management, and Use (2 ed.). Texas A&M University Press. pp. 61-68. ISBN 9780890967171. http://books.google.com/books?id=g3-kkgAxxnoC&client=firefox-a.
 |
This article about an even-toed ungulate is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
