Boar baker. The white-bearded peccary is an unusual animal

bakers bakers

family of non-ruminant artiodactyls. Body length up to 1 m, weight up to 30 kg. They are similar in appearance to pigs. 2 genera (3 species), in the forests of South and Central America. 1 species in the IUCN Red List.

BAKERS (Tajassuidae), a family of artiodactyl mammals of the non-ruminant suborder; includes two genera and three species. Body length up to 1 m, weight up to 30 kg. In appearance, peccaries are similar to pigs, in contrast to which they have three instead of four fingers on their hind limbs. The upper fangs of the peccary are directed downwards, like those of predators, and not upwards, like those of pigs. A peculiarity of the peccary is an odorous musky gland located in the middle of the back. When the animal is excited, the gland is exposed. His bristles are thick, especially long on the back of the head, neck and back, the tail is short and hidden in the hair, the legs are short and thin. Bakers are common in the forests of South and Central America.
Collared peccary(Tayassu tajasu) is so named because of the light stripe on the shoulders, reminiscent of a harness harness; lives in Central and South America. Bakers are active mainly at night. Unlike wild boars, they gather in large herds of 10–40 or more heads. Each herd has its own plot of 75–250 ha. In the bush and grass, such herds lay paths-tunnels.
Animals feed at night, and spend the day on the haul. The main food is herbaceous plants, their fruits, bulbs, rhizomes, less often small animals. There is no specific breeding time, but young are usually born in July-August after the rainy season. Pregnancy lasts 142–149 days. Usually same-sex piglets are born, which after a few hours run after their mother. Unlike pigs, mother and baby join the herd the next day. Peccaries are favorite prey for jaguars and cougars; object of trade (meat, skin). Chak peccary (Catagonus wagneri) is listed in the International Red Book.

encyclopedic Dictionary . 2009 .

See what "bakers" are in other dictionaries:

Peccary Collared peccary scientific classification Kingdom: Animals Type: Chordates Subtype: Pozvono ... Wikipedia

A family of non-ruminant artiodactyls. Body length up to 1 m, weigh up to 30 kg. They are similar in appearance to pigs. 2 genera (3 species), in the forests of Yuzh. and Center. America. 1 species in the IUCN Red List (International Union for Conservation of Nature and natural resources) … Big Encyclopedic Dictionary

Exist., number of synonyms: 5 apua (3) animal (277) musky pig (1) ... Synonym dictionary

MUSK PIG or BAKERS See this word. Dictionary foreign words included in the Russian language. Chudinov A.N., 1910. BAKERS Muscovy pig in South America. Explanation of 25,000 foreign words that have come into use in the Russian language, with ... ... Dictionary of foreign words of the Russian language

- (Tayassu) a genus of non-ruminant artiodactyl mammals of the pig family. Some zoologists distinguish P. in a separate family. Body length 75 100 cm, height 44 57 cm, weigh 16 30 kg. Outwardly, they resemble small pigs. They are more different... Great Soviet Encyclopedia

Family of non-ruminant artiodactyls. Length body up to 1 m, weight up to 30 kg. According to ext. look similar to pigs. 2 genera (3 species), in the forests of Yuzh. and Center. America. 1 species in the IUCN Red List. Collared peccary with cubs ... Natural science. encyclopedic Dictionary

bakers- pekariai statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas gentis apibrėžtis Gentyje 2 rūšys. Paplitimo arealas - P. ir Centr. America, S. Amerika iki Arizonos valstijos. atitikmenys: lot. Tayassu English. colared and white lipped peccaries;… … Žinduolių pavadinimų žodynas

bakers- pekariniai statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas šeima apibrėžtis Šeimoje 2 gentys. Kūno masė – 18 50 kg. atitikmenys: lot. Tayassuidae engl. peccaries vok. Nabelschweine; Pekaris rus. bakers; bakery pranc. pecaris;… … Žinduolių pavadinimų žodynas

- (Dicotyles) a mammal from the family of pigs (Suidae); 38 teeth: 4 incisors in the upper jaw and 6 in the lower and 2 canines and 12 molars in each. The fangs are not twisted upward and do not pierce the upper lip. The body, head and snout are short; snout end ... ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron

bakers- p ekari, non-squel., husband. (animal) ... Russian spelling dictionary

Books

• Food. Feast, Chefs and Recipes, David Salaria, Richard Tames. How did the Romans prepare the dormouse animal? Why in the 19th century Did the bakers add gypsum to the flour? Why were skulls made from sugar? And when it was considered good tone regurgitate what you eat during lunch? Book…

Otherwise, musk pigs are called bakers. Initially, they were attributed to the pig family. However, the musk pig has little in common with ordinary hogs. Now these pigs are classified as a family of peccaries - non-ruminant artiodactyl mammals.

Muscovy pig - where does the name come from

A gland with a musky-like secret is located on the back of animals (in its posterior half). Animals, raising their bristles over the gland, forcefully vomit a terribly smelling secret, marking their habitat. Because of this terrible smell, the musky pig got its name.

Characteristic features

Bakers have significant hallmarks distinguishing them from ordinary pigs. According to its characteristics, the musky pig is a non-ruminant ungulate. There are three sections in her stomach. The anterior one is formed by 2 sausage-shaped blind sacs.

The hind legs have three toes instead of four. The direction of the upper powerful trihedral, very long (contacting with the lower) fangs is the same as that of predators - down. The jaw is filled with thirty-eight teeth. Any musky pig is smaller than true boars. The weight of animals varies from 16 to 30 kg, maximum height 57 cm, and the length does not exceed 100 cm.

In appearance, individuals resemble ordinary pigs. They have a large wedge-shaped head, a short neck, tiny eyes, and slightly rounded ears. Their body is covered with thick bristles. She, elongated at the neck, nape and back, forms a beautiful mane. The animal has a short tail, hidden in the bristles, stands on thin short legs.

habits

Cautious animal - the musky pig hears excellently, due to which it practically does not fall into the field of view of a person. Rather, you can hear the characteristic clicking of teeth and the stomp of fleeing individuals, rather than themselves.

The pigs eat herbaceous plants, fruits, roots and bulbs. They are relatively little interested in living creatures, although they may well have a snack on insects, lizards, small animals and even carrion. During dry periods, they prefer to eat succulent plants, such as prickly pear or agave.

habitats

The distribution area captures the southwestern United States and deepens into Central Argentina. Musk pigs are suitable for living both dry steppes and rainforests. Animals, huddled in herds, actively feed at night, and during the day they settle down on the beds.

A natural threat to peccary habitats is jaguars and cougars. Coyotes also dare to attack the young. Mothers, driven by instinct, vigorously protect their young. Attacking predators, they inflict bites on them, refraining, unlike a pig, from blows with fangs. Enraged and frightened animals characteristically click their fangs.

reproduction

In the place where the herd left droppings, a lot of mounds of excrement are formed. Females are ready for mating at 8-8.5 months, and males at 11-11.5 months. There is no specific mating period for peccaries. However, young growth, as a rule, appears in July - August, following the rainy season and the rapid growth of greenery.

The gestation period ranges from 142-149 days. An individual that has felt the approach of childbirth is removed from the herd to a secluded place. Often, childbirth occurs in a hole. There are usually 2 piglets in a litter, but 3 or 4 gilts are rare. For the most part, the musk pig brings single-sex piglets (only 20% fall on the birth of heterosexual young animals).

The very next day, the babies with their mother join the herd, they feed on milk in a standing position (a couple more differences from real boars). Milk in females flows only into the two rear pairs of nipples. Piglets begin to eat adult food, having lived up to 6-8 weeks.

Types of musk pigs

Peccaries are represented by two subfamilies and twenty genera. There are four modern look musk pigs are white-bearded, chucky, giant and collared peccaries.

Peccary (Tayassuidae) - a family represented by several species of non-ruminant artiodactyl mammals, previously classified as a family of Pigs. The word "bakers" is translated as "a beast capable of making roads in the forest."

Description of bakers

Peccaries are small animals with a body length within a meter and a height at the withers of not more than 55-57 cm.. The average weight of an adult animal is 28-30 kg. All bakers are characterized by the presence of a wedge-shaped, somewhat heavy head on a short neck. The animal has a straight profile and an elongated snout, small eyes and neat rounded ears. The baker's legs are thin and short.

It is interesting! In America, the baker was nicknamed "musk pig", which is due to the specific and unpleasant odor of the secret secreted by a special gland located in the lower back, next to the tail.

The physique is of a lightweight type, with a rather short tail and a slightly hanging back. The body of the baker is completely covered with very thick bristles, which are much longer at the withers and in the back area, therefore, it resembles a kind of mane. At the stage of arousal, such a mane easily rises, which exposes the gland, spewing out a persistent and very "odorous" secret.

Appearance

Peccaries have a number of significant differences from pigs, which allows them to be classified as ruminant ungulates:

• division of the stomach into three sections with a pair of blind sausage-shaped bags;
• the presence of three fingers on the hind limbs;
• downward-pointing upper trihedral fangs;
• the presence of 38 teeth;
• two pairs of mammary glands.

With the help of a special musky secret, adult bakers mark their territory by spraying a strong-smelling liquid on bushes, grass or stones.

Character and lifestyle

Non-ruminant artiodactyl mammals settled in a fairly vast territory are accustomed to different habitats, they feel absolutely equally comfortable not only in rainforests, but also in desert zones. White-bearded peccaries are found most often in dry woodlands, and large boulders or limestone caves are used by such animals as shelter from enemies.

It is difficult to call settled bakers. A mammal in search of a new place of food is able to migrate from one territory to another. As a rule, bakers stay in one place for a day. Artiodactyl animals live in herds, total strength which often number two hundred individuals. The head of such a large community is the oldest and most experienced female leader.

It is interesting! Bakers are active mainly in the dark, but in the daytime such mammals are often awake, resting on their haunches.

Due to the large accumulation of individuals in the herd, animals are able to successfully protect not only themselves, but also their offspring from enemies. If non-ruminant artiodactyl mammals are threatened by predators, then all adult members of the herd are standardly lined up in a powerful defensive line. Regardless of age, bakers like to bathe in mud or dust, but they always defecate only in specially designated places for this purpose.

How long do bakers live

Despite the rather high mortality rates of bakers in nature, the life expectancy of such an animal in captivity often reaches 22-24 years.

sexual dimorphism

Males and females of many animal species differ greatly in their appearance or structural features, but bakers do not fall into this category. Distinctive feature bakers is the complete absence of signs of sexual dimorphism. However, the "pigs" themselves are quite ways to distinguish each other by gender.

Types of bakers

To date, there are only four types of bakers that have been well studied:

• Collared peccaries(Pecari tajacu) are small and incredibly mobile animals. Their main feature is the presence of a yellowish-white stripe descending from the scapular region to the lower part of the head;
• white-lipped or white-bearded bakers (Tayassu pecari) are larger and more powerful animals compared to collared bakers, preferring to inhabit areas near water. Their main feature is a large spot white color located on the bottom of the head;
• Chaco bakers (Catagonus wagneri) were discovered in 1975. The animal lives in wild and arid places. A species feature is longer limbs, a host and ears, for which such an animal received the nickname "donkey pig";
• Giant bakers (Pecari maximus) were discovered in Brazil in 2007. This species differs from any other of its relatives in its unique color and large sizes. Giant bakers lead a family lifestyle, preferring tropical, wild forests.

A couple of species of wild bakers that were considered extinct were rediscovered in the last century, when developing covered tropical vegetation lands and savannahs.

It is interesting! Bakers are classified as social animals, and communication is supported by a variety of sounds, including grunts.

Range, habitats

The total area of ​​the territory that belongs to one herd can vary from 6-7 to 1,250 hectares. Territory marking of the animal is carried out with the help of feces, as well as secretions from the spinal glands. Collared peccaries are the only species found in the United States where five to fifteen individuals form a herd.

The living area of ​​a herd of white-bearded bakers in the north of the range and to southern Mexico is 60-200 km 2. Large herds of this species are most often represented by a hundred or more heads. White-bearded peccaries are able to stay in a certain area for a couple of days, after which they look for food in another area. This species quite often feeds on food of animal origin.

Diet of bakers

Herbivores are distinguished by the complex structure of the stomach, which ensures the full digestion of coarse foods. In the southern habitats, peccaries feed on a wide variety of foods, represented by roots, bulbs, nuts and mushrooms.

Sometimes such animals are able to eat carrion and eggs, frogs and small snakes. In the northern part of the range, bulbs and roots, nuts and beans, various berries, herbaceous vegetation and cacti, worms and insects most often form the basis of the nutrition of such an animal.

In arid regions of habitat, rather sparse vegetation serves as food for such animals, so the most different kinds cacti, very easily and quickly processed by a two-chamber stomach. Adult bakers, with the help of their hard muzzle, roll the plucked cactus on the surface of the earth, which saves it from thorns.

• Class: Mammalia Linnaeus, 1758 = Mammals
• Infraclass: Eutheria, Placentalia Gill, 1872 = Placental, higher animals
• Order: Artiodactyla Owen, 1848 = Artiodactyla
• Suborder: Nonruminantia Jaeckel, 1911 = Non-ruminant, porcine
• Family: Tayassuidae Palmer, 1897 = Peccaries, bakers
• Species: Catagonus wagneri Rusconi, 1930 = Chaco peccary
• Genus: Tayassu Fischer, 1814 = Bakers

Family: Tayassuidae Palmer, 1897 = Peccaries, bakers

Outwardly similar to pigs. Body length 75-110 cm, tail length 1.5-5.0 cm (only 6-9 vertebrae in the tail compared to 20-23 in pigs). Relatively short-legged; height at the withers 44-57 cm. Weight 18-50 kg. Forelimbs with 4 fingers, hind limbs with 3 (some fossil species had 2 fingers). The muzzle is relatively shorter than in pigs, with a movable cartilaginous, almost bare patch on which the nostrils open. There are no ossifications in the patch. Both sexes have a specific skin gland. The eyes and ears are small. The ears are rounded, covered with sparse hair. The body is compressed laterally. The tail is almost invisible from the outside. The entire body is covered with bristle-like hair. The color of the hairline is from dark brown to gray-brown; sometimes a white collar runs from the shoulders to the throat, or a white spot is located on the lower jaw and throat. One pair of nipples...

The skull is shortened in the rostral part. Bone auditory drums are heart-shaped. The facial part of the lacrimal bone and the lacrimal opening are absent. Incisal openings are small, rounded. The upper fangs, up to 4 cm long, point down (and not up and out, as in pigs). Their front edge is sharpened sharply by the lower fangs. The third upper incisor is missing. The lower incisors are horizontal and directed forward. Crowns of molars of lophodont type. The 5th finger of the hind limb represents only a small remnant of the proximal metatarsus. In the collared peccary, the proximal sections of the metatarsal bones of the III and IV fingers are fused, and in the white-lipped peccary, the same sections of the metatarsal and metacarpal bones of the III and IV fingers are fused. With age, the white-lipped peccary also fuses the distal parts of the metacarpus. The stomach is subdivided into 3 sections, of which the anterior one has two sausage-shaped outgrowths. There is no gallbladder.

The diploid set of chromosomes in the collared peccary is 30. Distributed in North and South America from the states of Texas, New Mexico and Arizona south to Central Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. They inhabit arid places (collared peccary) or tropical rainforests (white-lipped peccary). They keep in small groups of 5-15 (collared peccary) or large herds - up to 50-100 or more heads (white-lipped peccary). Both males and females gather in the same herd. Active at night and on cool mornings and evening hours. Vision is poorly developed, hearing and smell are good. Omnivorous, but prefer plants; do not neglect small terrestrial animals. Polygamous bakers. The mating period is not confined to a specific time. The duration of pregnancy is 140-150 days. Cubs in a single litter during the year 1-4 (usually 2). Sexual maturity occurs at 9-18 months of age. Bakers are hunted for meat (in order for the meat to be edible, the sacral gland is removed). In 1965, only through the city of Iquitoe, 129 thousand skins of collared and 30 thousand skins of white-lipped peccary were exported to Peru.

Bakers are not real pigs.

Outwardly similar to pigs, but they have a number of features that prompted zoologists to distinguish bakers into a special family. For example, the fangs of the upper jaw do not grow up, like in real pigs, but down. There are not four, but three fingers on the hind legs, the stomach is more complex, and there is a large gland on the back. When a baker is excited by something, the wool billows out to expose the gland, and a strong odor spreads around. In dense thickets, near water and in shallow places in water, iron leaves its specific “aroma” on branches and reeds, which serves as a guiding thread for other bakers. So placing it on the back is fully justified by life in the swamps: the higher the odorous marks are, the better they will be preserved, the water will not flood them in the flood.

Collared peccary. The white-lipped peccary also lives in Mexico and South America. Bakers are similar to pigs and are close to them by blood, but differ, for example, in that their upper fangs do not grow up, but down.

Two types of peccaries: collared (with a wide yellowish stripe in the form of a collar on the shoulders) distributed from the south of the USA to Argentina, and white-lipped peccaries, larger and living in more numerous herds in the forests of America - from Mexico to Paraguay.

Another representative of the rarest creatures of our planet is the white-bearded baker. Another name for this animal is the white-lipped peccary.

Scientists have been fighting for many years to ensure that this species does not completely disappear from the face of the Earth, whether they succeed or not - you will find out now, and we will also tell you in more detail about who the bakers are and where they are lives.

Habitats of bakers on our planet

The territory of distribution of these unusual animals was the continents of North and South America. So, for example, white-lipped bakers are found in the northwestern, central and eastern parts South America up to Argentina. In addition, some of these animals live in Ecuador and Mexico.

Appearance of a white-bearded peccary

Looking at this animal for the first time, you might think that in front of you domestic pig. However, this is not entirely true, although bakers are similar in appearance to pigs, from the point of view of science they belong to a completely different family (peccary).

The peccary has a large head, the muzzle has an elongated shape. The limbs are short. The weight that these animals reach is from 24 to 42 kilograms. The body grows in length to a maximum of a meter. The tail of these pig-like creatures is very small, its length barely reaches 5.5 centimeters.

The coat color of white-lipped peccaries varies with age. Adults are dark brown in color, while younger peccaries have a reddish to brown coat.

Lifestyle of bakers and their behavior in nature

Settled in a fairly vast territory, bakers are accustomed to living in different areas. They feel equally comfortable in both rainforests and deserts. There are white-bearded peccaries in arid forest areas. To hide from enemies, bakers use limestone caves or large boulders.

These animals cannot be called sedentary: in search of new places of food, they constantly migrate from one territory to another. Moreover, bakers stay in one place for no more than a day.

They live in herds, sometimes numbering 200 individuals. At the head of this community is the oldest female leader. A large accumulation helps animals to better protect themselves and their offspring from attack by enemies. And the worst opponents of bakers in nature are considered and.

These animals show activity, for the most part, in the dark, although they are also awake during the day.