﻿468 
  PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  NATIONAL 
  MUSEUM 
  vol. 
  103 
  

  

  Tapirs 
  are 
  omnivorous. 
  They 
  browse 
  and 
  graze. 
  They 
  feed 
  on 
  

   underwater 
  organisms 
  as 
  readily 
  as 
  they 
  pluck 
  fruit, 
  leaves, 
  and 
  twigs 
  

   from 
  shrubs 
  and 
  trees. 
  They 
  are 
  facile 
  of 
  movement 
  whether 
  in 
  open 
  

   country 
  or 
  thick 
  brushland, 
  whether 
  in 
  water 
  or 
  under 
  water. 
  They 
  

   are 
  expert 
  hill-climbers, 
  runners, 
  sliders, 
  waders, 
  and 
  swimmers. 
  

   Tapirs 
  tame 
  quickly 
  and 
  adjust 
  themselves 
  easily 
  to 
  artificial 
  living 
  

   conditions 
  in 
  captivity. 
  They 
  survive 
  seasonal 
  changes 
  without 
  ap- 
  

   parent 
  inconvenience 
  when 
  exhibited 
  in 
  American 
  and 
  European 
  

   menageries. 
  Ostensibly, 
  there 
  are 
  no 
  barriers 
  in 
  environment 
  or 
  

   limiting 
  factors 
  in 
  tapir 
  structure 
  and 
  physiology 
  to 
  preclude 
  the 
  

   coexistence 
  of 
  all 
  three 
  American 
  species 
  in 
  a 
  natural 
  habitat 
  suitable 
  

   to 
  any 
  one 
  of 
  them. 
  The 
  Brazilian 
  species 
  does 
  share 
  a 
  part 
  of 
  its 
  

   range 
  in 
  northwestern 
  South 
  America 
  with 
  Baird's 
  tapir. 
  Here, 
  both 
  

   species 
  frequent 
  the 
  same 
  feeding 
  and 
  watering 
  places. 
  On 
  the 
  other 
  

   hand, 
  the 
  high 
  Andean 
  woolly 
  tapir 
  (Tapirus 
  pinchague) 
  is 
  not 
  recorded 
  

   from 
  lower 
  slopes 
  of 
  the 
  Andes 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  tapirs 
  are 
  not 
  known 
  to 
  

   encroach 
  upon 
  the 
  upper 
  levels, 
  or 
  temperate 
  zone, 
  of 
  the 
  Cordilleras. 
  

  

  Characters. 
  — 
  External 
  characters 
  recorded 
  in 
  literature 
  for 
  distin- 
  

   guishing 
  any 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  three 
  living 
  American 
  species 
  from 
  the 
  others 
  

   are, 
  for 
  the 
  most 
  part, 
  either 
  common 
  to 
  all 
  species 
  or 
  are 
  juvenal 
  

   and 
  individually 
  variable 
  characters. 
  In 
  all 
  American 
  tapirs, 
  entire 
  

   margin 
  or 
  only 
  upper 
  borders 
  and 
  lower 
  edges 
  of 
  ears 
  either 
  conspic- 
  

   uously 
  trimmed 
  or 
  spotted 
  with 
  white 
  or 
  buff, 
  or 
  uniformly 
  brown 
  or 
  

   black; 
  lips 
  edged 
  white, 
  gray 
  or 
  buff; 
  cheeks 
  paler 
  than 
  crown, 
  the 
  

   contrastingly 
  paler 
  color 
  usually 
  continuing 
  onto 
  throat, 
  chest, 
  and, 
  

   to 
  a 
  varying 
  degree, 
  on 
  belly; 
  chin 
  darker 
  than 
  cheeks 
  and 
  lips; 
  upper 
  

   parts 
  of 
  head 
  and 
  body, 
  sides, 
  and 
  limbs 
  light 
  drab 
  to 
  brown 
  in 
  palest 
  

   individuals, 
  dark 
  brown 
  to 
  black 
  in 
  darkest 
  individuals. 
  Juvenal 
  

   pelage 
  marked 
  by 
  a 
  variable 
  pattern 
  of 
  yellow 
  and 
  white 
  spots 
  and 
  

   stripes 
  covering 
  entire 
  body. 
  Spotting 
  persists 
  past 
  the 
  first 
  year 
  of 
  

   age 
  and 
  vestiges 
  may 
  remain 
  (usually 
  on 
  limbs) 
  in 
  young 
  adults. 
  

   Apart 
  from 
  the 
  urinogenital 
  system, 
  sexual 
  dimorphism 
  is 
  not 
  evident. 
  

  

  Size.— 
  Shn-psoB. 
  (Bull. 
  Amer. 
  Mus. 
  Nat. 
  Hist., 
  vol. 
  86, 
  p. 
  77, 
  1945) 
  

   calculated 
  the 
  following 
  proportional 
  differences 
  between 
  Pleistocene 
  

   Tapirus 
  excelsus 
  and 
  Recent 
  T. 
  terrestris 
  and 
  T. 
  hairdii: 
  In 
  linear 
  

   measurements, 
  T. 
  excelsus 
  about 
  1.37 
  times 
  T. 
  terrestris 
  and 
  about 
  1.19 
  

   times 
  T. 
  hairdii] 
  in 
  bulk 
  and 
  weight, 
  T. 
  excelsus 
  over 
  2.5 
  times 
  T. 
  

   terrestris 
  and 
  about 
  1 
  .7 
  times 
  T. 
  hairdii. 
  On 
  the 
  basis 
  of 
  these 
  figures, 
  

   T. 
  hairdii 
  is 
  about 
  1)^ 
  the 
  linear 
  size 
  and 
  nearly 
  lYt 
  times 
  bulkier 
  and 
  

   heavier 
  than 
  T. 
  terrestris. 
  The 
  estimated 
  difference 
  in 
  bulk 
  and 
  weight 
  

   between 
  the 
  two 
  species 
  may 
  be 
  extreme. 
  Length 
  of 
  skull 
  and 
  pro- 
  

   portions 
  of 
  postcranial 
  bones 
  in 
  present 
  material 
  confirm 
  the 
  greater 
  

   average 
  size 
  of 
  T. 
  hairdii. 
  T. 
  terrestris 
  averages 
  slightly 
  larger 
  than 
  

   T. 
  pinchnque. 
  Greatest 
  length 
  of 
  skull, 
  from 
  gnathion 
  to 
  nuchal 
  crest, 
  

  

  