ETYM Braz. tapyra: cf. French tapir.
(Homonym: taper).
Large inoffensive chiefly nocturnal ungulate of tropical America and southeast Asia having a heavy body and fleshy snout.
Ant-eater with short proboscis.
Any of the odd-toed hoofed mammals (perissodactyls) of the single genus Tapirus, now constituting the family Tapiridae. There are four species living in the American and Malaysian tropics. They reach 1 m/3 ft at the shoulder and weigh up to 350 kg/770 lb. Their survival is in danger because of destruction of the forests.
Tapirs have thick, hairy, black skin, short tails, and short trunks. They are vegetarian, harmless, and shy. They are related to the rhinoceros, and slightly more distantly to the horse.
The Malaysian tapir T. indicus is black with a large white patch on the back and hindquarters. The three South American species are dark to reddish brown.
Their general body form is rounded in back and tapering up front, with a short tail and a short trunk.