1. What is a tapir?

Tapirs are large herbivores that belong to the Tapirdae family, of the Perissodactyla order of mammals.

2. How many species of tapir are there?

Four species of tapir exist on the planet today, all of which are endangered. Recent research has suggested that there may be two subspecies of the Lowland Tapir, but this has yet to be confirmed.

3. Where do tapirs live?

The Baird's Tapir lives in Mexico and Central America, through to the northernmost areas of Colombia.

The Lowland (often called Brazilian) Tapir lives in the rainforests of South America.

The Mountain Tapir lives in the high cloud forests and paramos of the northern Andes of Colombia, Ecuador, and Northern Peru.

The Asian (also called the Malayan) Tapir lives in the rainforests of Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia and the Indonesian island of Sumatra.

Prehistoric tapirs inhabited Europe, North America and Southeast Asia (including China). Tapirs roamed areas of the United States as recently as ten thousand years ago. They migrated from Central to South America across the Panamanian land bridge between two and three million years ago.

4. What are tapirs closest relatives?

Despite what some may think, tapirs are not related to anteaters, pigs or hippopotamuses; their closest relatives are horses and rhinoceroses - the only remaining families of the Perissodactyla order.

Extinct species of tapir would have looked similar to the four extant species, although the proboscis (the tapir's snout) only evolved in the last few million years.

5. How long do tapirs live?

The natural lifespan of a tapir can be up to thirty years, but like many aspects of tapirs, the average lifespan of wild tapirs is poorly researched. The gestation period of a tapir calf is around thirteen months, with very few recorded cases of twins.

Baby tapirs have striped and spotted coats for camouflage and weigh between eight and twelve kilograms at birth.

6. How do tapirs spend their lives?

Tapirs prefer a wet climate and usually live near water, but can on occasion found in comparatively dry forests. Tapirs like to bathe; they swim well, and can remain submerged for several minutes to escape predators. They are also excellent climbers, and due to their size and thick skin, can bulldoze through thick vegetation to escape. Tapirs tend to be creatures of habit, and can be often found using pathways that they have cleared previously. They like to congregate at salt licks (mineral deposit that animals regularly lick) to get the sodium, calcium, iron, phosphorus and zinc required for bone, muscle and general growth.

Tapirs are generally territorial with partially overlapping ranges - females may have larger ranges than males. It was once believed that tapirs are solitary animals, but there is increasing evidence that tapirs may stay together in pairs and mate for life.

Tapirs are usually crepuscular by nature, but they can be active at any time of the day and night. They sleep in a wide range of terrain; it is believed that they choose locations that will allow them to pick up scents of predators. This can be by bushes or trees, or in shallow pools of water, and may return to previously-used sleeping locations. They have excellent hearing and a strong sense of smell that helps them to avoid predators. They are also strong and agile runners, and tend to evade preditors or deter them with their tough hides and by snapping and biting. (Tapirs are extremely muscular, with strong jaws.) They often run to water when threatened and are able to spend several minutes fully submerged at a time.

7. What are the largest threats to tapirs' survival?

Humans. All species are now threatened because of habitat destruction, hunting and human activity in their ranges. The Mountain Tapir and Asian Tapir are the most at risk. The Sumatran population of the Asian Tapir may be no longer viable as there have been suggestions that only fifty animals remain in the wild. The mountain tapir population generally is at serious risk due to the fragmentation of its native range. The Baird's Tapir and Lowland Tapir are facing increasing threats, with both no longer present in some of their traditional ranges.