Habitat and Habitat Utilization
There are two known species of capybara, Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris and Hydrochaeris isthmius. The species found throughout South America is H. hydrochaeris, a semi-aquatic grazer found along pond and river basins that span from Southern Panama to Northern Argentina and Uruguay.
Capybaras are first and foremost a herbivorous species. Their diet consists mostly of terrestrial grasses and reeds and some aquatic vegetation: Hymenachne amplexicaulis, Leersia hexandra, Paratheria prostrata, Reimarchloa acuta, Panicum laxum, Panicum grumosum, Carex riparia and Cynodon dactylon. Grazing activity generally occurs in the late afternoon to evening hours, while seasonally, grazing activity varies between wet (January through April) and dry seasons (May through December)(Alho et al., 1987; Quintana et al., 1994). Nutrient rich and palatable grasses are more abundant during the wet season so grazing time is shortened. Grazing is generally done in large and the highest concentrations of grazing capybaras have been observed during the wet season (Alho et. al., 1987). An observation that fits with limited space due to flooding and abundance of nutrient rich vegetation.
Grazing is essential for capybara survival; wallowing and resting areas also represent two very important components of capybara survival. Capybaras utilize water for drinking, bathing, thermoregulation, protection from predators and reproduction (Quintana et al., 1994). Resting areas are generally located on land and hidden from view.
Another interesting aspect of capybara behavior is regurgitation and coprophagy (or coecotrophy). The act of regurgitation generally takes place in the late afternoon to evening hours while capybaras are busy grazing. Similar to the ruminants, capybaras were found to precede regurgitation with a gaping yawn, followed by a stretching of the neck and a minute later, commence mastication (Lord, 1994). Coprophagy generally occurs after defecation and involves ingestion of a particular type of excrement produced in the cecum from the anal area (Mendes, 2000). The “pasty” excrement ingested was found to contain higher levels of protein and lower levels of grass fiber than regular oval excrement (Mende,s 2000). Coprophagy can probably be explained as an adaptive physiology of the species to compensate for a relatively protein deficient diet due to herbivorism.
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