Mammal
Collared Peccary
Tayassu tajacu
The Collared Peccary is a medium-sized mammal and is locally known as quenk. They have grey - black coarse, bristled hair that covers their entire body. They have a white or yellowish lining that extends like a collar around its neck, hence the name. Collared peccaries have a large head, circular snout, small ears and a barely visible tail. They have a stocky body with small legs with their front
Description
The Collared Peccary is a medium-sized mammal and is locally known as quenk. They have grey - black coarse, bristled hair that covers their entire body. They have a white or yellowish lining that extends like a collar around its neck, hence the name. Collared peccaries have a large head, circular snout, small ears and a barely visible tail. They have a stocky body with small legs with their front feet having four hoofed toes and the hind having 3. They also have huge, straight canine teeth which do not protrude but make notable lumps under the lips, which can reach up to 2 inches in adult males. Peccaries have a musk or scent gland which is located on their rump and near their eyes. They use this scent to recognize other group members and to mark territories. Their odor is very distinctive and therefore they are often smelt before they are seen. Collared peccaries breed year round, they live in groups with a dominant male that mates with multiple females. Gestation is around 140 - 150 days and females produce 1 - 2 young, although litter size ranges from 1 - 4. Newborns weigh around 1.5 lbs and have four temporary canine teeth and two lower incisors and are able to follow their mother only an hour after birth. Juveniles are reddish - brown with a dark dorsal stripe, they are weaned around 2 - 3 months old. Collared peccaries have poor eyesight and rely mostly on their hearing and sense of smell. They live in group of 5 - 15 members and rely mainly on vocalizations to communicate with each other as well as their musk smell. They will rub their bodies against each other and exchange scents, groom each other and lay closely while sleeping. The collared peccary lacks a ruminating stomach that allows it to ferment plant material to break it down. Instead, this species has a more complex three chambered stomach for digesting plant material. They are social and are generally active at dusk and dawn.
Fun Facts
The Collared Peccary is the smallest of all the peccary species. There are currently only 4 known species. Collared Peccaries have around 38 teeth in total. The canines grows straight up or down rather than curve and lock together to stabilize that jaw and improve the force of the bite.