AnAge entry for Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris

Lifespan, ageing, and relevant traits

The biggest rodent, the capybara is relatively short-lived for its body size. One study in the wild reported a high juvenile mortality, particularly in the first year of life, resulting in a life expectancy at birth of shortly over one year. The oldest females found in the same study were 6 years of age and the oldest males were 7 years of age [0747]. Other estimates and anecdotal reports suggest these animals may live up to 10 years in the wild [0434]. One captive specimen lived for 15.1 years [0671].

Life history traits (averages)

Metabolism

References

[0817] Bielby et al. (2007), The fast-slow continuum in mammalian life history: an empirical reevaluation, PubMed
[0776] Seluanov et al. (2007), Telomerase activity coevolves with body mass not lifespan, PubMed
[0671] Richard Weigl (2005), Longevity of Mammals in Captivity; from the Living Collections of the World
[0036] Savage et al. (2004), The predominance of quarter-power scaling in biology
[0420] White and Seymour (2003), Mammalian basal metabolic rate is proportional to body mass2/3, PubMed
[0610] Ernest (2003), Life history characteristics of placental non-volant mammals
[0434] Ronald Nowak (1999), Walker's Mammals of the World
[0747] Jose Moreira (1995), The Reproduction, Demography and Management of Capybaras (Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris) on Marajo Island - Brazil
[0455] Virginia Hayssen et al. (1993), Asdell's Patterns of Mammalian Reproduction: A Compendium of Species-Specific Data
[0680] Wootton (1987), The effects of body mass, phylogeny, habitat, and trophic level on mammalian age at first reproduction

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