In 2011, one specimen was spotted on the Central Coast of California. Sightings are fairly common in Florida, although a breeding population has not yet been confirmed. Many escapees from captivity can also be found in similar watery habitats around the world. They roam in home ranges averaging 10 hectares (25 acres) in high-density populations.
Capybara have flourished in cattle ranches. They are superb swimmers and can hold their breath underwater for up to five minutes at a time. They live in densely forested areas near bodies of water, such as lakes, rivers, swamps, ponds, and marshes, as well as flooded savannah and along rivers in the tropical rainforest. DescriptionĬapybaras are semiaquatic mammals found throughout all countries of South America except Chile. The fossil genera Cardiatherium, Phugatherium, Hydrochoeropsis, and Neochoerus are all capybaras under that concept. Īmong fossil species, the name "capybara" can refer to the many species of Hydrochoerinae that are more closely related to the modern Hydrochoerus than to the "cardiomyine" rodents like Cardiomys. In one instance, material once referred to four genera and seven species on the basis of differences in molar shape is now thought to represent differently aged individuals of a single species, Cardiatherium paranense. This is largely due to the recognition that capybara molar teeth show strong variation in shape over the life of an individual. In recent years, the diversity of fossil hydrochoerines has been substantially reduced. The taxonomy of fossil hydrochoerines is also in a state of flux. Paleontological classifications previously used Hydrochoeridae for all capybaras, while using Hydrochoerinae for the living genus and its closest fossil relatives, such as Neochoerus, but more recently have adopted the classification of Hydrochoerinae within Caviidae. Since 2002, molecular phylogenetic studies have recognized a close relationship between Hydrochoerus and Kerodon, the rock cavies, supporting placement of both genera in a subfamily of Caviidae. The living capybaras and their extinct relatives were previously classified in their own family Hydrochoeridae. The capybara and the lesser capybara both belong to the subfamily Hydrochoerinae along with the rock cavies. The scientific name, both hydrochoerus and hydrochaeris, comes from Greek ὕδρω ( hydro "water") and χοῖρος ( choiros "pig, hog"). Its common name is derived from Tupi ka'apiûara, a complex agglutination of kaá (leaf) + píi (slender) + ú (eat) + ara (a suffix for agent nouns), meaning "one who eats slender leaves", or "grass-eater".