''Tapirus'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

tapir Tapirs ( ) are large, herbivorous mammals belonging to the family Tapiridae. They are similar in shape to a Suidae, pig, with a short, prehensile nose trunk (proboscis). Tapirs inhabit jungle and forest regions of South America, South and Centr ...

which contains the living tapir species. The

Malayan tapir The Malayan tapir (''Tapirus indicus''), also called Asian tapir, Asiatic tapir, oriental tapir, Indian tapir, piebald tapir, or black-and-white tapir, is the only living tapir species outside of the Americas. It is native to Southeast Asia from ...

is usually included in ''Tapirus'' as well, although some authorities have moved it into its own genus, ''Acrocodia''.

Extant species

The

Kabomani tapir The South American tapir (''Tapirus terrestris''), also commonly called the Brazilian tapir (from the Tupian language, Tupi ), the Amazonian tapir, the maned tapir, the lowland tapir, (Portuguese language, Brazilian Portuguese), and ''la sachava ...

was at one point recognized as another living member of the genus, but is now considered to be nested within ''T. terrestris''.

Evolution

The genus ''Tapirus'' first appeared during the Middle

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

(around 16-10 million years ago), known fossils in both Europe (''T. telleri'') and North America (''T. johnsoni'' and ''T. polkensis''). The youngest tapir in Europe, ''

Tapirus arvernensis ''Tapirus'' is a genus of tapir which contains the living tapir species. The Malayan tapir is usually included in ''Tapirus'' as well, although some authorities have moved it into its own genus, ''Acrocodia''. Extant species The Kabomani tapir ...

'' became extinct at the end of the Pliocene, around 2.6 million years ago. ''Tapirus'' dispersed into South America during the Early Pleistocene as part of the

Great American Interchange The Great American Biotic Interchange (commonly abbreviated as GABI), also known as the Great American Interchange and the Great American Faunal Interchange, was an important late Cenozoic paleozoogeographic biotic interchange event in which land ...

, around 2.6-1 million years ago. Tapirs suffered considerable extinctions at the end of the Pleistocene, and went completely extinct north of southern

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

Fossil species

*†''

'' Croizet & Jobert, 1828 *†''

Tapirus augustus The giant tapir (''Tapirus augustus'') is an extinct species of tapir that lived in southern China, Vietnam and Laos, with reports suggesting it also lived in Taiwan, Java, and potentially Borneo. The species has been recorded from Middle and Late ...

'' Matthew & Granger, 1923 - Formerly ''

Megatapirus The giant tapir (''Tapirus augustus'') is an extinct species of tapir that lived in southern China, Vietnam and Laos, with reports suggesting it also lived in Taiwan, Java, and potentially Borneo. The species has been recorded from Middle and Lat ...

'' *†'' Tapirus californicus'' Merriam, 1912 *†'' Tapirus cristatellus'' Winge, 1906 *†'' Tapirus greslebini'' Rusconi, 1934 *†''

Tapirus haysii ''Tapirus haysii'' is an extinct species of tapir that inhabited North America during the early to middle Pleistocene Epoch (~2.5–1 Ma). These fossil remains of two juvenile ''T. haysii'' were collected in Hillsborough County, Florida on ...

'' Simpson, 1945 *†'' Tapirus johnsoni'' Schultz et al., 1975 *†''

Tapirus lundeliusi ''Tapirus lundeliusi'' is an extinct species of tapir that lived in Florida in the early Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( ; referred to colloquially as the ''ice age, Ice Age'') is the geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from to 11 ...

'' Hulbert, 2010 *†''

Tapirus merriami ''Tapirus merriami'', commonly called Merriam's tapir, is an extinct species of tapir which inhabited North America during the Pleistocene. Early history Tapirs have a long history on the North American continent. Fossils of ancient tapirs in No ...

'' Frick, 1921 *†'' Tapirus mesopotamicus'' Ferrero & Noriega, 2007 *†'' Tapirus oliverasi'' Ubilla, 1983 - Invalid *†'' Tapirus polkensis'' Olsen, 1860 *†'' Tapirus rioplatensis'' Cattoi, 1957 *†''

Tapirus rondoniensis ''Tapirus rondoniensis'' is an extinct species of large sized tapir that lived in northwestern parts of Brazil during the Pleistocene. Fossils of the species were found in the Río Madeira Formation of Rondônia, after which the species is named ...

'' Holanda ''et al''., 2011 *†'' Tapirus sanyuanensis'' Huang & Fang, 1991 *†'' Tapirus simpsoni'' Schultz et al., 1975 *†'' Tapirus sinensis'' Owen, 1870 *†'' Tapirus tarijensis'' Ameghino, 1902 *†''

Tapirus veroensis ''Tapirus veroensis'' is an extinct tapir species that lived in the area of the modern eastern and southern United States during the Pleistocene epoch (Irvingtonian-Rancholabrean). ''Tapirus veronensis'' is thought to have gone extinct around 11, ...

'' Sellards, 1918 *†'' Tapirus webbi'' Hulbert, 2005

References

{{Authority control Tapirs Mammal genera Taxa named by Mathurin Jacques Brisson Taxa described in 1762