Named after American naturalist Spencer Fullerton Baird, Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii) is one of the four species of the tapir family and is currently found in the national parks of Costa Rica. Tapirs are identified by their long and flexible snout, stubby tail, and are typically around 2 meters in height. They are nocturnal and vegetarian and will feed on fallen fruit and plant matter. They keep close to bodies of water and on hot days will spend most of the time submerged in the water with their head poking out.

Once endemic to all Costa Rican habitats, they are now exclusive to the national park regions. The population has declined more than 50% in the past 33 years due to habitat loss and fragmentation, climate change, mega-infrastructure, other land use change and hunting. The current population is estimated to be 3,000 individuals. Listed as a vulnerable species by the IUCN in the 1980’s, the Baird’s Tapir has since been listed twice as endangered since 2002. If current trends persist and no conservation measures are implemented, they are likely to become critically endangered in the near future.

Weighing in at 500 to 800 pounds, the “danta” as the locals refer to it, is the largest mammal in the Neotropics. They resemble small elephants or pigs with trunks, but are really most related to rhinoceroses and horses. Studies have used patch occupancy analysis statistics to map the changes in patterns of the species dispersal over time and determined they are currently the most endangered species of this region.

How the invisible Baird’s tapir can inform conservation management policies

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