The Cabybara is a pig-like aquatic rodent. They swim and
nibble on flowers and grasses around wetlands. I thought they seemed very
hippo-like in their movements. Cabybaras are the largest of the rodents and
they are found only in South America. We saw several families of them in the
Pantanal and they are so funny to watch. They do resemble huge rats but do not
have tails or large front teeth that stick out like the Nutria found in Oregon.
Back to them being like hippos: they have webbed feet and
can stay under water for five minutes at a time. They mate in water once a year
and usually have about seven babies at a time. We were fortunate enough to see
the babies and they look like little guinea pigs. Jaguar and caiman will prey
on small Cabybara and if the babies are threatened, the family will attempt to
move into the water and form a circle around their young. I didn't get any shots of them in the water but we did see them swim one evening when we took canoes out on a lake.
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