Cassell's Natural History, Vol. 2 (of 6)

by Unknown

II.—THE TAPIRIDÆ (FAMILY OF TAPIRS).

THE Hog-like creatures which constitute the family of Tapirs form the second division of the quadrupeds which are possessed of three toes on their hind feet, and are therefore termed, as has already been said, the Perissodactyla. It must not, however, be forgotten that these creatures possess a fourth toe on the fore foot, which is small and does not reach to the ground. The family is represented by one genus only—Tapirus—which is distributed over wide regions in the warmer parts of the Old and the New Worlds. All the animals comprised under it possess short and movable trunks, by which they convey their food into their mouths, and at the extremity of which are placed the nostrils. They are of a brownish-black colour; the skin is hairy and extremely thick, and the tail is very short.

FORE (A) AND HIND (B) FOOT OF TAPIR. (After Murie.)

The Tapir inhabits principally the inmost recesses of dense forests, is nocturnal in its habits, and is phytophagous, that is, feeds on vegetables. However, it is said that it is also an indiscriminate swallower of everything, filthy or clean, nutritious or otherwise, pieces of wood, clay, pebbles, and bones being not uncommonly found in its stomach; and it is even stated of one that was kept in confinement that it gnawed a silver snuff-box to pieces and swallowed the contents.

SKULL OF AMERICAN TAPIR.

n, Nasal Bone; m, Maxillary Bone; pm, Pre-maxillary Bone.

The skull of the Tapir, seen in profile, reminds us strongly of that of the Hog, the same pyramidal elevation being brought to view. Examined closely, however, we find that this pyramid differs immediately from that of the latter animal by the possession of only three faces, while in the Pig there are four. In addition, it is also to be noticed that the anterior line is formed by the joining of the lateral faces, dilating into a triangle only towards the front: this being due to the frontal bones, which are early united and directed somewhat backwards. The bones of the nose are articulated to the base of the triangle, and here there is a point which penetrates between them. A deep furrow, produced by the upper border of the orbit, descends from the two sides above the orbit, which, approaching the sub-orbital hole, serves for the insertion of various muscles connected with the proboscis. With regard to the differences between the skull of the Malayan Tapir and the American, Cuvier observes that a glance at the profile of their respective crania is sufficient to impress upon the observer their specific differences. The forehead of the Indian Tapir is convex, and rises higher than the back of the head. It is accompanied, in its rise, by the nasal bones, an arrangement by which space is given for the comparatively large proboscis, and adding length to the furrows where the muscles are inserted. This organisation, according to Cuvier, explains why the Indian Tapir has a more powerful and more extensile trunk than the American. There is also in the former, on the base of the nasal bones, at their junction with the frontal bones and on each side, a deep fossa, or depression, which does not exist in the other species. This elevation of the forehead is accompanied by a depression of the occipital crest, which, far from forming a pyramid, as in the American species, rather descends backwards. The aperture of the bony nostrils, enlarged by the prolongation of the maxillary bones, terminates below and forwards by more elevated premaxillaries, which are fused (anchylosed) together in early youth, as in the American.

HEAD OF MALAYAN TAPIR, SHOWING MUSCLES
OF SHORT TRUNK AND FACE. (After Murie.)

In the upper jaw there are, in the adult Tapir, on each side three incisors, one canine, four premolars, and three molars. In the lower jaw, on each side, there are three incisors, one canine, three premolars, and three molars: altogether making forty-two teeth in number.

Some peculiarities offer themselves with regard to the form of the teeth: for instance, the outer incisors above are very large and resemble canines, while those below are unusually small. The canines themselves are very small, having their crowns considerably shorter than their roots.

TEETH OF MALAYAN TAPIR.

With regard to other portions of the skeleton nothing need be remarked, except that the bones of the extremities are exceedingly strong, and resemble in many respects those of the Rhinoceros.

Three species of Tapirs are known, namely, American Tapir (Tapirus americanus), Roulin’s Tapir (Tapirus villosus), and Asiatic Tapir (Tapirus malayanus).

THE AMERICAN TAPIR.[263]—Of the three foregoing species the best known is the American Tapir, which is found in almost all parts of South America from Buenos Ayres to Central America, and from the Andes to the Atlantic. In its habits it is nocturnal, spending the whole of the day-time in the cool shades of the densest forests, and coming forth to feed on the surrounding vegetation as evening approaches. It is a most powerful animal, and everything in the underwood of the forest gives way to its rush. It has the habit of making runs or roads through the brushwood, which beaten tracks are usually selected by travellers in passing through the forests. It is stated that it has a most keen sense of smell, enabling it to detect its enemies at long distances, when it at once rushes into brushwood or thicket so dense that neither man nor horse can follow. It never attacks man without being very hardly pressed and brought to bay.

AMERICAN TAPIRS.

It is excessively fond of the water, being a most expert swimmer, and usually keeping to a particular track in the element in which it indulges.

The American species is characterised by having the general colour throughout of a deep brown, approaching to black; but the sides of the lower lip, band on the under and middle part of the chin, upper edges of the ears, and naked line at the bottom of the hoofs, are snowy white. The scanty hair of the body is very short, and is hardly to be distinguished at a comparatively short distance.

The skin, which is of great density beneath, is described by M. Roulin to be not less than seven lines thick on the back; and he says that in the days when rifles were not brought to their present pitch of perfection a ball from one of them would scarcely make an impression.

On the back of the neck there is a thick rounded crest, which extends from the forehead, as low as the level of the eyes, to the shoulders, and beset with a comparatively thin mane of stiff blackish bristles.

The American Tapir is hunted for its excessively tough hide, and also for its flesh, which, although described by Europeans as unsavoury, being coarse and dry, is considered palatable by the Indians. It is captured sometimes, although not often, by means of the lasso, an instrument so successful in Horse-catching in America, but often futile as regards the Tapir, for its usual haunts render this mode of capture most difficult, and its determined rush and immense strength frequently enable it to break the strongest lasso. Another way of hunting the Tapir practised by the native hunters is to find out the animal’s track leading to the water; there, with their Dogs, they patiently lie in wait until evening approaches, when the Tapir comes out for the purpose of taking his evening stroll and indulging in the indispensable bath. They then get between him and the water, when a desperate encounter ensues, the Dogs often getting very badly injured.

The most successful manner of catching the Tapir, however, is by means of imitating its whistle or call, thus bringing the animal within range of the Indian’s poisoned arrow.

MALAYAN TAPIR.

The American Tapir is spoken of as being mild in captivity and easily domesticated, and tame Tapirs are permitted to run at large in the streets of the towns of Guiana, and often wander into the forests, but return again in the evening to the house in which they are kept and fed. The Tapir is capable of considerable attachment to its owner, and possibly, by care and attention, might be turned to good account, as the qualities with which it is credited—strength, docility, and patience—ought to render it capable of the duties of a beast of burden.

THE HAIRY TAPIR,[264] the second species of American Tapir, inhabits the inner range of the Cordilleras, this species being strictly mountainous in its habits.

It is stated to differ from the other species of America by not possessing a mane; but has altogether longer hair, and there are no wrinkles on the proboscis. In the conformation of the skull and general characteristics it more nearly resembles the Asiatic Tapir than the American, and is less common than the latter animal.

THE MALAYAN TAPIR.[265]—The Asiatic Tapir, which appears to have become known to Europeans only in the present century—at least, the first certain information of it reached Europe in the year 1816—is an inhabitant of Sumatra, Malacca, and the south-west provinces of China. It is said to have been found also in Borneo. In size it is larger than either T. americanus or T. villosus. It is distinguished by the absence of a mane, the general colour of the hair being glossy black, but with the back, rump, and sides of the belly white.

In its habits the Asiatic Tapir appears to be similar to his American cousin, and in captivity it is said to be of a most mild and inoffensive disposition, becoming as tractable and familiar as a Dog.

FOSSIL TAPIRS.—The living Tapir is known at the present day only in the warmer regions of the New and Old Worlds, in South America, and in the East. In the Pleistocene Age, however, it is proved to have ranged far up the valley of the Mississippi in the United States. In the Miocene and Pliocene Ages the animal inhabited Europe, and its fossil teeth are met with by no means unfrequently in the Crag deposits of Norfolk and Suffolk. The Lophiodon of the European and American Eocenes is also a closely allied form.