Prickly pear cactus is an important 
winter food. The spines of the 
plant do not deter the peccaries, 
which simply bite into the pads. 
Two or more peccaries commonly 
feed together without dispute. 
during this time. When the animals be- 
gan to move again, they did so rather 
suddenly. More feeding followed, with 
the animals moving rapidly. As dark- 
ness fell, the herd was close to the 
bed-ground where it would spend the 
night. 
A day in the life of an individual 
peccary is thus dominated by feeding, 
slow movement, and resting, with 
other animals always close at hand. 
The day is punctuated by brief feeding 
squabbles, mutual rubs, and most con- 
spicuously, by play. The single most 
revealing and important fact about 
peccary social organization is that the 
average distance between animals is 
about ten feet, or three body lengths. 
Individuals are born into a herd and 
are literally surrounded by familiar 
animals throughout their lives. By this 
criterion alone, peccaries are more so- 
cial than most other ungulates. More- 
over, as I have intimated, they also 
display a level of cooperation that 
makes them unique among the hoofed 
mammals. 
Cooperation takes several forms. 
First, there is some degree of coop- 
erative feeding, or food sharing. This 
practice may occur between adults, 
but it is especially prevalent between 
adults and juveniles. All juveniles are 
apparently given carte blanche by all 
adults, and juveniles are not in the 
least hesitant to use their special sta- 
tus, often aggressively driving an adult 
from a food source, as well as snatch- 
ing food from an adult’s mouth. Adults 
could easily dominate juveniles in 
these encounters, but they do not. This 
social convention is probably impor- 
tant for juveniles in several ways: it 
provides for mostly positive social in- 
teractions between juveniles and their 
future peers; it gives juveniles access 
to high-quality foods; and it probably 
teaches them what types of plants 
should be eaten. All adults extend 
these favors toward all young; non- 
parents are as tolerant as parents. 
Feeding interactions illustrate a 
more general phenomenon: adults are 
tolerant of juveniles in all respects. 
In bed-grounds, juveniles clamber over 
the reclined herd and try to wedge 
themselves between adults; on trails, 
they are often able to shoulder adults 
aside. In one typical instance, two 
small infants stood beneath an adult's 
chin and repeatedly snapped at its 
mouth as it tried to feed. The adult 
was forced to elevate its snout in order 
to chew, and in this position it began 
to walk forward. The juveniles darted 
between its front legs and caused it 
to stumble. There was no retribution. 
Adults also act cooperatively to pro- 
tect juveniles from predators. The ca- 
nine teeth of peccaries in both sexes 
are long, robust, and self-sharpening 
since the back of the bottom canines 
slide against the front faces of the 
teeth on top. Adult peccaries do not 
tolerate coyotes or bobcats. They 
quickly drive them away, while often 
ushering juveniles in another direc- 
tion. The response of herds to humans, 
and probably to large predators such 
as bears or mountain lions, is different. 
Here there is no attempt at defense; 
the animals simply run away. If the 
disturbance is mild enough (as when 
the herd picks up the scent of a distant 
human observer), there is a well-or- 
ganized retreat, w ith one or two adults 
65 
