IUCN Red List Status:

Least Concern

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Diet

Capybaras eat grasses, water plants, reeds, grains and some fruit and vegetables.

Habitat

Capybaras can be found in a number of locations in South America, including the Amazon Rainforest. They live in a variety of habitats including: flooded grasslands, swamps, marsh, rainforest, wetlands and tropical grasslands.

Fun Fact

They can stay underwater for up to 5 minutes, which helps them to hide from predators. Their slightly webbed feet help them to manoeuvre both in the water and on land.

Lifespan

The average lifespan is 12 years in captivity and up to 10 years in the wild.

Capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) are highly adapted to an aquatic lifestyle and even mate in water.

Behaviour: Females have one litter per year, in which they can have up to 8 young.  The gestation period is around 150 days. All the young within a group tend to stay together in a creche and suckle from any nursing female.

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