White-lipped peccary

White-lipped peccary
Temporal range: Pliocene–present
CITES Appendix II (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Artiodactyla
Family: Tayassuidae
Genus: Tayassu
Fischer von Waldheim, 1814
Species:
T. pecari
Binomial name
Tayassu pecari
(Link, 1795)
Range of the white-lipped peccary (note that the Central American part of its range is much more fragmented in actuality and that its presence in El Salvador is erroneous)
Synonyms
  • Sus pecari (Link, 1795)

The white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari) is a species of peccary found in Central and South America and the only member of the genus Tayassu.[note 1] Multiple subspecies have been identified. White-lipped peccaries are similar in appearance to pigs, but covered in dark hair (except on certain regions, such as the throat, where it is cream). The range of T. pecari, which extends from Mexico to Argentina, has become fragmented, and the species's population is declining overall (especially in Mexico and Central America). They can be found in a variety of habitats. Social animals, white-lipped peccaries typically forage in large groups, which can have as many as 300 peccaries.

They are an important part of their ecosystem and multiple efforts are being made to preserve them in the wild. Not all disappearances are explained, but human activities play a role, with two major threats being deforestation and hunting; the latter is very common in rural areas, although it can be dangerous, as white-lipped peccaries can be aggressive. They are hunted for both their hide and meat.

  1. ^ Keuroghlian, A.; Desbiez, A.; Reyna-Hurtado, R.; Altrichter, M.; Beck, H.; Taber, A. & Fragoso, J.M.V. (2013). "Tayassu pecari". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T41778A44051115. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T41778A44051115.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
  3. ^ Acosta, Luis E.; Garbino, Guilherme S. T.; Gasparini, Germán M. & Dutra, Rodrigo Parisi (9 September 2020). "Unraveling the nomenclatural puzzle of the collared and white-lipped peccaries (Mammalia, Cetartiodactyla, Tayassuidae)". Zootaxa. 4851 (1): 60–80. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4851.1.2. PMID 33056737. S2CID 222846767.
  4. ^ "Explore the Database". Mammaldiversity.org. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference un was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Kiltie, Richard A. (September 1982). "Bite Force as a Basis for Niche Differentiation Between Rain Forest Peccaries (Tayassu tajacu and T. pecari)". Biotropica. 14 (3): 188–195. Bibcode:1982Biotr..14..188K. doi:10.2307/2388025. JSTOR 2388025. Retrieved 26 April 2022.


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