AnAge entry for Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris
Classification (HAGRID: 02863)
- Taxonomy
-
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia (Taxon entry)
Order: Rodentia
Family: Caviidae
Genus: Hydrochoerus
- Species
- Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris
- Common name
- Capybara
- Synonyms
- Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris
Lifespan, ageing, and relevant traits
- Maximum longevity
- 15.1 years (captivity)
- Source
- ref. 671
- Sample size
- Large
- Data quality
- High
- Observations
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)
- Female sexual maturity
- 456 days
- Male sexual maturity
- 456 days
- Gestation
- 150 days
- Weaning
- 103 days
- Litter size
- 4.8 (viviparous)
- Litters per year
- 1.25
- Inter-litter interval
- 245 days
- Weight at birth
- 1,500 g
- Weight at weaning
- 8,299 g
- Adult weight
- 55,000 g
- Postnatal growth rate
- Maximum longevity residual
- 58%
Metabolism
- Typical body temperature
- 310ºK or 37.1ºC or 98.8ºF
- Basal metabolic rate
- 36.7540 W
- Body mass
- 26385.0 g
- Metabolic rate per body mass
- 0.001393 W/g
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
External Resources
- Integrated Taxonomic Information System
- ITIS 825303
- Animal Diversity Web
- ADW account
- Encyclopaedia of Life
- Search EOL
- NCBI Taxonomy
- Taxonomy ID 10149
- Entrez
- Search all databases
- Ageing Literature
- Search Google Scholar or Search PubMed
- Images
- Google Image search
- Internet
- Search Google