Staying close to the water, these tapirs live in heavily fragmented ranges across Southeast Asia’s tropical rainforests in the Indomalayan realm. They are easily recognizable by the white patch extending from their shoulders to the hindlimbs on their otherwise black-haired body.Males and females look the same.
These tapirs are generally crepuscular, solitary, and strictly herbivorous. They are commendable runners, climbers, and swimmers. Hence, they can traverse steep terrain and walk along the river bottoms using their prehensile nose as snorkels to breathe underwater.They are monogamous, with each individual having only one mate during the breeding season; the female usually gives birth to one calf.
They face many threats, including large-scale habitat loss due to rapid development and poaching for their meat and skin, further exacerbated by their low birth rate and highly fragmented populations.
Distribution
Indonesia
Malaysia
Official estimate
Myanmar
ThailandDid you know?
- Their natural predators are only the leopards and tigers.
Anything we've missed?
Help us improve this page by suggesting edits. Glory never dies!
Suggest an editGet to know me
Terrestrial / Aquatic
Altricial / Precocial
Polygamous (size) / Monogamous
Dimorphic / Monomorphic
Active: Diurnal / Nocturnal
Social behavior: Solitary / Pack / Herd
Diet: Carnivore / Herbivore / Omnivore / Piscivorous / Insectivore
Migratory: Yes / No
Domesticated: Yes / No
Dangerous: Yes / No
