Pigs, Peccaries and Hippos Status Survey and Action Plan (1993)

 

Chapter 2.4

 

The Chacoan Peccary

(Catagonus wagneri)

 

Andrew B. Taber

 

 

Status and Action Plan Summary

 

Status category 5 (endangered).

 

Although still widely distributed through its limited geographical range, the Chacoan peccary is now seriously threatened. Its numbers are declining and populations are becoming increasingly fragmented. Destruction of its habitat is accelerating, and hunting for human consumption continues uncontrolled. The evident scarcity of Chacoan peccaries in the few national parks within its range is particularly worrying. Under existing conditions there is little hope for recovery and the trend is downwards. The total population size is unknown, but probably several thousand persist in the dry Chaco of Argentina and Bolivia and an estimated 5,000 individuals survive in Paraguay.

 

Priority conservation actions recommended for this species are: (1) investigate the feasibility of establishing a new national park where a substantial peccary population still exists; (2) establish private reserves on land where significant numbers of peccaries survive; (3) enforce regulations against hunting both inside and outside national parks and reserves; (4) establish and enhance existing environmental education programmes to increase local awareness of conservation problems and the value of native wildlife, using the Chacoan peccary as a flagship species; (5) strengthen wildlife services in Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay so that populations can be monitored and hunting controlled; (6) continue efforts to breed Chacoan peccaries in captivity; (7) investigate the feasibility of translocating wild caught animals from areas being deforested, to the parks; and (8) continue research on the status of wild populations, aspects of the ecology and behaviour of the species relevant to its conservation, and human hunting patterns in the Chaco, so that effective management recommendations can be made.

 

 

Introduction

 

The existence of the Chacoan peccary or 'tagua' was first reported in 1975 making it one of the most recently discovered large mammals (Wetzel et al., 1975). The species is endemic to the dry Chaco of western Paraguay, south-eastern Bolivia and northern Argentina; one of the hottest and driest regions of South America. The Gran Chaco, of which the dry Chaco forms a part, is an enormous flat plain with a mosaic of vegetation types including thorn forest, savannah, parkland, marsh and gallery forest. Chacoan peccaries are a scientifically interesting and important endemic form with many morphological, behavioral and ecological adaptations to their hostile environment. They also have potential as a source of bush meat for rural inhabitants and, if properly conserved and managed, they could prove an invaluable economic incentive to preserve habitat in a wild or semi-wild state. Being large and conspicuous, C. wagneri is also an ideal flagship species for the Chaco, a region with a surprisingly rich and still little known fauna (see Redford et al., 1990).

 

The Chacoan peccary is distinguished from the other living peccaries, Tayassu tajacu and T. pecari, by its larger size, greater mass, proportionally bigger head with an elongated and convex rostrum, long ears and fur, whitish ruff on the jowls, and relatively long legs (Wetzel et al., 1975; Wetzel, 1977b; Grubb & Groves 1993). Mean body weight of non-pregnant adults is 34.7kg (range: 29.5 - 40), total length averages 1,091mm, and height at shoulder 575mm (Mayer and Brandt, 1982). Its long legs and hooves suggest that it is more cursorial than either Tayassu species. The structure of its mandible and dentition also seem to be more adapted for browsing than the other living peccaries (Wetzel, 1977b). They have four pairs of mammae, and a dorsal scent gland about 20cm above the tail; the latter is a typical feature of the Dicotylidae. In common with the other peccaries, they have 4 toes on their fore feet, but most individuals have only two toes on the hind feet instead of three as in the other species. There is no significant sexual dimorphism; nor have any subspecies been described (Mayer and Brandt, 1982).

 

 

Former and Present Distribution

 

The Chacoan peccary is endemic to the semi-arid thorn forest of the Gran Chaco. It has a total geographical range of approximately 140,000 km2 (Fig. 3; Sowls, 1984).

 

In Paraguay, the species formerly occurred in all departments of the Chaco. At the time of its discovery in the mid 1970's this species was still remarkably abundant, though its numbers have since plummeted. In 1976, Sowls (1984) sighted 72 individuals during a 19 day period along one section of the Trans-Chaco highway. However, far fewer animals were sighted during field trips in the same area in 1977 and 1979 and, in 1981, only 6 individuals were seen. In 1987, during a 10 day survey in the same region, no Chacoan peccaries were sighted by the present author, who was told by local people that the species had virtually disappeared. Today the Chacoan peccary has an extremely fragmented distribution in Paraguay and the only area where a significant population survives (c. 4,000 individuals; Taber, in press), albeit at low density, is in the southwestern department of Boquerón.

 

During 1989, the presence of Chacoan peccaries was verified in both Argentina and Bolivia (Taber, 1991). In Argentina, Chacoan peccaries occurred in Chaco, Formosa, Salta and Santiago del Estero Provinces, and although it remains widely distributed through this region it is now found only at very low density (Ojeda and Cajal, 1976; Olrog et al., 1976; Wetzel et al., 1975; Wetzel and Crespo, 1976; R. Ojeda, pers. comm.). The Bolivian Chaco is on the periphery of its range but C. wagneri persists in the departments of Chuquisaca, Santa Cruz, and Tarija (Eisentraut, 1986; Taber, unpubl.; Tello, 1986).

 

Link to Fig. 3: Approximate former and present known range of the giant or Chacoan peccary, Catagonus wagneri.

 

 

Habitat, Ecology and Behavior

 

The Chacoan peccary occurs in areas of low rainfall and high temperature and is restricted to the driest parts of the Gran Chaco biome (Sowls, 1984). Mean annual temperatures in its range exceed 24oC (Gorham, 1973) and annual rainfall may be as little as 200 mm in the western part of its range. Precipitation increases to the east to about 900 mm where the dry Chaco is replaced by the palm savannah of the moist Chaco. Most of the precipitation in its geographical range occurs between December and March, and no rain may fall during five (June to October) or more months of the year.

 

The prime habitat for the species is thorn forest characterized by emergent tress, such as Schinopsis lorentzii and Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco; a dense shrub layer including Ruprechtia triflora, Caparis sp. and Acacia sp.; and a ground cover of bromeliads and cactii, such as Opuntia sp., Cleistocactus baumannii and Eriocereus guelichii (Mayer and Brandt, 1982). Chacoan peccaries are also found at lower density in open woodland, characterized by trees such as Tabebuia caraiba and Schinopsis balansae (Taber, unpubl.).

 

Cactii, including Cleistocactus, Eriocereus and at least two species of Opuntia, constitute the principal food of Chacoan peccaries. They also forage on the roots of bromeliads, fruit from various species of Acacia and Prosopis, and occasionally browse on forbs (Mayer and Brandt, 1982; Taber, unpubl.). Chacoan peccaries lick and eat mineral rich soil from naturally occurring salt licks and leaf-cutter ant mounds. They also consume carrion on occasion and may even prey on small mammals (Benirschke et al., 1990). Although captive animals drink daily (D. Meritt, pers. comm.), there is circumstantial evidence that the species seldom drinks water in the wild, and radio-tagged individuals did not leave their territories to obtain water even during the five months long dry season when no surface water was available in their ranges.

 

Like the collared peccary, they are territorial and maintain scat stations and marking posts; the latter being marked with their dorsal scent gland. Their home range size, based on convex polygons, measure about 1,100 ha and contain a core area of about 600 ha (Taber, unpubl.).

 

Chacoan peccaries are diurnal and become active about sunrise, are active throughout the day and become inactive at dusk (Taber, unpubl.). The species seems to have a similar behavioral repertoire and social system to that of Collared peccary, T. tajacu (Mayer & Wetzel, 1989). Chacoan peccaries live in small stable groups of 2 to 10 individuals, with most groups consisting of 4 to 5 adults and accompanying juveniles. A slightly biased sex ratio in favor of males has been reported by Mayer and Brandt (1982) and Sowls (1984). Circumstantial and captive evidence suggests that females produce their first litters at a minimum age of two years and have only one litter a year (Benirschke et al., 1990; Taber, unpubl.). The mean litter size is 2.72, with a range of 1 to 4. The farrowing season extends from September through January. Maximum longevity is unknown but Sowls (1984) estimated the age of some individuals, based on tooth cementum layers, as at least nine years.

 

 

Threats to Survival

 

The recent decline in the range and numbers of Chacoan peccaries is probably due to a combination of factors. These factors include hunting by humans, predation by larger felids, habitat destruction and disease (Taber, 1989, 1991).

 

Of these, hunting pressure undoubtedly has a major negative impact on these animals. All peccary species in the Chaco are vigorously hunted wherever they occur, even in the national parks and reserve areas. Sowls (1984) has stated the Chacoan peccary constituted one of the most important sources of bush meat in the areas where they were previously abundant. The species is particularly susceptible as they frequently emerge onto roads to dust bathe during the day, and they often react to danger by standing their ground rather than fleeing. Both of these behaviors enable hunters to eliminate whole groups during a single encounter. Unlike the collared and white-lipped peccaries, however, Chacoan peccaries are rarely exploited commercially for their hides, which are thinner and much less valuable than those of the other species. Fur buyers in Paraguay in 1988, for example, purchased Catagonus skins from settlers for about US$ 0.5 each compared to about US$8.0 for those of T. tajacu and US$ 5.0 for T. pecari (Taber, 1991).

 

Jaguar (Panthera onca) and puma (Felis concolor) are the main natural predators of Chacoan peccaries though ocelot (F. pardalis) may also prey on the young (Mayer & Brandt, 1982; Taber, in press). During the early 1970's local settlers attributed an apparent increase in Chacoan peccary numbers in Paraguay to the over-hunting of jaguar (Wetzel, 1977a). By the same token, some Paraguayans now ascribe the current scarcity of the species to predation by the apparently recovered large felid population. However, whilst these predators may exert some control on Chacoan peccary numbers, it is unlikely that they could cause the present population crash.

 

Habitat destruction, however, is the major threat to this species and may, ultimately, cause its demise in the wild state. Although large tracts of intact bush survive, the rate of clearance for agriculture and cattle pasture in the Paraguayan Chaco has been estimated by some authorities as being as much as 1,500 sq. km annually (M. Sanjuro, pers. comm). Moreover, the pace of land clearance is accelerating and in as little as a decade this species may not have enough contiguous habitat left to support viable populations. The pattern of development in Argentina and in Bolivia where Chacoan peccaries are found, differs in that much of the land is degraded by fire and overgrazed by livestock (Morello and Hortt, 1985; Taber, unpubl.). These peccaries seem to adapt to this degraded dry Chaco bush, and survive in altered, but not cleared, habitat as long as enough food and cover is available and they are not over-hunted (Taber and Ojeda, unpubl.).

 

Several, apparently reliable reports have been received that individuals and groups of Chacoan peccaries were found dead or dying from disease in the northern and western Paraguayan Chaco between 1979 and 1981. The nature of this disease is unknown, but both foot-and-mouth disease and bovine rabies were common in the region in the late 1970's (W. Regehr, pers. comm.). It is noteworthy that large numbers of cattle first reached this area during the 1970's, though Chacoan peccaries have persisted in parts of the Argentine Chaco, which have had livestock, and their associated diseases, for 100 years or more. Thus, a possible explanation for the population crash in the largely virgin bush of northwestern Paraguay may be that the peccaries previously had little exposure and, hence, little immunity to livestock diseases (Taber, 1989, 1991).

 

 

Conservation Measures Taken

 

The Chacoan peccary is classed as 'Vulnerable' in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals (1988), and it is included on Appendix I of CITES, to which all three Chaco countries are signatories. Hunting of all wildlife in Paraguay is officially prohibited. The species is also protected in Argentina, where its exportation, interprovincial traffic and commercial exploitation is illegal. However, there is little commercial traffic in the hides of this species and it is not thought to be threatened by the skin trade at the present time. Even so, the Chacoan peccary is heavily hunted for its meat everywhere it occurs and existing regulations prohibiting its hunting are ignored and unenforced.

 

Field status surveys on the species have been completed in all three Chaco countries, as well as an ecological field study in Paraguay. A conservation action plan for the species in Paraguay was submitted to the Paraguayan Government in 1990 (Taber, 1990) and similar plans are being prepared for submission to the relevant authorities in Bolivia and Argentina in 1991.

 

At present, there are only two national parks within this species' range in Paraguay, the Defensores del Chaco (7,800 sq. km) and Teniente Enciso (400 sq. km). As yet, there are no reserves of any kind in the Bolivian Chaco. In Argentina, the only protected area containing Chacoan peccaries is the El Copo Provincial Reserve (1,140 sq. km), in Santiago del Estero province. However, there are only small numbers of Chacoan peccaries in this reserve, and in each of the two Paraguayan parks, and it is doubtful if any of these areas support viable populations. In addition, these reserves all require major investments in personnel, training, equipment, and infrastructure if the staff is to control hunting effectively.

 

 

Captive Breeding

 

The species has proved difficult to establish in captivity. Two of the three hand-reared animals exported to Zoo Berlin died in quarantine and the third succumbed shortly afterwards (Frädrich, 1986). Two animals also died after capture in Argentina (J. Cajal, pers. comm.), and two of three animals kept at various times at the Asuncion zoo died within a year of their arrivals, one of them probably from erysipelas (J. A. Rivas, pers. comm). The zoo in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia has also acquired at least three animals in recent years, though the first two of these have died (O. Jordan, pers. comm).

 

In 1985, following PPSG representation, the Chacoan peccary was adopted for a Species Survival Plan (SSP) under the aegis of the Conservation Management Committee of the American Association of Zoological Parks and Aquariums (AAZPA). The following year, a captive breeding station was established at Estancia Toledo, near Filadelfia, in the central Paraguayan Chaco, with funding from the Foundation for Endangered Animals, the Zoological Society of San Diego, and the Lincoln Park Zoo. During the first few years of this project, serious problems were experienced obtaining animals and many of those acquired from hunters were in a seriously debilitated condition. Of the total of 44 wild caught adult and juvenile animals obtained (mostly by purchase) for 'Proyecto Tagua' 31 died in captivity (Byrd et al., 1988; Benirschke et al., 1990; Unger, i992; D. Brooks, pers. comm.). However, as of 10th May 1992 (Unger, 1992), the colony comprised a total of 43 (22 males, 14 females + 7 unsexed) individuals of which 32 (15 males, 10 females + 7 unsexed) individuals were captive born (Unger, 1992).

 

 

 

Conservation Measures Proposed:

An Action Plan

 

With the wide range of problems confronting this species in the wild, a variety of actions will be necessary to conserve it. The principal objectives and priorities of the conservation action plan for the tagua in the Paraguayan Chaco (Taber, 1990), and the similar plans being prepared for the populations of this species in Bolivia and Argentina, are incorporated in the following recommendations, with the additional proviso that the priority projects should be implemented as soon as possible.

 

 

Objectives

 

1. To ensure the survival of the Chacoan peccary in perpetuity by the promotion and implementation of those activities and projects specified in the Action Plan or such others as may be identified in future.

 

2. To promote the development and implementation of an effective conservation strategy for the whole dry Chaco as a means of preserving not only the Chacoan peccary but representative parts of this ecosystem in its entirety.

 

3. As part of this strategy to promote research into, and implementation of, ecologically sustainable development practices in the Chaco.

 

 

Priority Projects

 

1. Upgrade and expand the existing protected areas system within the dry Chaco of Paraguay, Argentina and Bolivia.

 

At present, there are only two national parks within this species' range in Paraguay (Defensores del Chaco, 7,800 sq. km, and Teniente Enciso, 400 sq. km), one provincial reserve in Argentina (El Copo, 1,140 sq. km), and no reserves at all in the Bolivian Chaco. Moreover, none of the three reserves in which it occurs is thought to support a viable population, and major investments in personnel, training, equipment, and infrastructure are needed in each of these areas if hunting is to be controlled effectively. Efforts must therefore be directed towards the establishment of additional protected areas in each of these countries, but especially in the Paraguayan department of Boquerón, where substantial numbers of these animals still occur. The problems with the existing parks systems in these countries also need to be addressed by local, national and international organizations. Investments will need to be made by international aid organizations; though the solutions to the problems will depend as much on promoting regional patrimony and interest in the parks as in providing financial assistance.

 

 

2. Create a private reserve system in the Chaco.

 

Given that significant numbers of Chacoan peccaries now survive in only a few locations outside the existing protected areas system, and that these may be the only viable populations, the creation of additional reserves is critical. Current efforts in Paraguay to set up a system of reserves on private land in areas with high densities of Chacoan peccaries are, therefore, a matter of the highest priority. Parallel private reserve programmes also need to be developed in the Argentinean and Bolivian Chaco by appropriate NGO's. These areas may be of the utmost importance in the event that the populations in the parks do not recover with more effective protection, and could provide a source of animals for re-stocking those parks in the future.

 

 

3. Establish an effective hunting ban on the species.

 

The capability of the wildlife services of the Paraguayan, Argentinean and Bolivian governments to monitor Chacoan peccary populations and enforce existing regulations should be developed by all possible means (also see below). In Paraguay, for example, it might be better to permit hunting of less vulnerable species, than perpetuate the existing total, but totally unenforceable, ban on all hunting. This would provide better protection for the most vulnerable species, whilst also enabling subsistence hunters to obtain meat legally. By the same token, this would also encourage the government to establish an effective wildlife management system rather than avoid confronting the problem by making hunting of all species illegal.

 

 

4. Develop an environmental education program.

 

The Chacoan peccary has tremendous potential as a flagship species around which to stimulate conservation interest and action in the Chaco. New and existing programmes established by governmental organizations and NGO's should focus attention on this species by the production of posters, booklets and other materials for distribution amongst Chaco inhabitants to inform them of the species' status and the potential benefits of protecting it and its habitat. Such education programmes should also inform local people which species may and may not be hunted, in order to protect the most threatened species.

 

 

5. Develop effective wildlife services in all three Chaco countries.

 

There is a need to establish an integrated approach to wildlife management in these countries, which incorporates both conservation and game management policies, in order to protect the most threatened species. The economic importance of some non-threatened species, such as the collared peccary, should be recognized within a management system designed to ensure the sustainable exploitation of those species, as well as the enhanced future protection of the most threatened forms, such as the Chacoan peccary. However, there is a lack of trained personnel in this region and the training of local biologists to study and monitor wildlife populations should be a high priority. Conservation biology workshops would be held each year in each Chaco country to provide biologists, rangers and wildlife administrators with the opportunity to obtain field experience and exchange ideas and expertise. Grants should be provided for biology students from each country to obtain advanced degrees in wildlife management or a related field.

 

 

6. Improve and extend captive breeding initiatives.

 

The existing captive breeding program at Estancio Toledo in the Paraguayan Chaco should be continued and developed with a view to: (a) provide a safeguard against the extinction of this species in the wild; (b) serve as a source of animals for the establishment of similar projects in the other Chaco countries and/or for reintroduction projects; (c) provide the means of obtaining biological data on the species which cannot be obtained from the wild; and (d) serve as a public education and training facility for wildlife biologists and veterinarians from Paraguay and the other Chaco countries.

 

 

7. Assess the feasibility of translocating wild caught peccaries into the national parks or other reserves from areas where the natural habitat is being destroyed.

 

Problems which need to be addressed include: (a) how can animals be captured and transported safely; (b) how can translocated animals be effectively protected in these areas; and (c) what behavioral and ecological problems must be solved to make translocation successful?

 

 

8. Conduct further research on various aspects of the Chacoan peccary's reproductive biology, behavior, ecology and future management needs both in the wild and in captivity.

 

In particular, the status of the various wild populations needs to be monitored, the effects of human hunting and predation on these populations needs to be determined, and studies should be conducted on the susceptibility of this species to various livestock borne diseases so that appropriate management responses can be devised if necessary. A study of human hunting patterns in the Chaco and estimates of the annual harvest of all species taken by both sports and subsistence hunters in the various parts of the Chaco are also required. These data are likely to prove essential for the enhanced future management of this species, and they may provide strong incentive reasons for national governments to initiate serious efforts to control human hunting activities and conserve wildlife populations.

 

 

Acknowledgements

 

I am grateful for the assistance of many officials and scientists within the Paraguayan Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, in particular: Oscar Meza, Eustacio Rios, and Celeste Acevedo. I extend my gratitude to my assistants Nora Neris, Flavio Colman and Juan Carlos Rebollo for their invaluable help in the field. Many other people in Paraguay have provided valuable information and help, and I thank them. In Argentina, I gratefully acknowledge Ricardo Ojeda and Jorge Cajal for their assistance and advice; and in Bolivia I especially thank Arturo Moscoso, Marcello Salles, and Otto Carlos Jordan. I also gratefully acknowledge Wildlife Conservation International for providing the funds for the field study. William Oliver, Richard Bodmer, Ignacio March and Dennis Meritt kindly provided comments on earlier drafts of this text, and Paul Vercammen and Peter Cuypers kindly prepared the distribution map. Lastly, I thank my wife, Dolores Ayerza, without whose help my work in Paraguay would have been impossible.

 

 

References

 

Benirschke, K. B., Byrd, M. L and Meritt, D. 1990. New observations on the Chacoan peccary, Catagonus wagneri. (Unpubl.) communication for the Krakow Meeting of Zoo Pathologists in May 1990: 5 pp.

Byrd, M. L., Benirschke, K. B., and Gould, G. C. 1988. Establishment of the first captive group of the Chaco peccary, Catagonus wagneri. Zool. Garten, 58: 265-274.

Eisentraut, M. 1986. Über das Vorkommen des Chaco-Pekari, Catagonus wagneri, in Bolivien. Bonn. zool. Beitr., 37: 43-47.

Frädrich, H. 1986. Schweine als zootiere. Zool. Garten, 56 (1): 7-19.

Gorham, J. R. 1973. The Paraguayan Chaco and its rainfall. In: J. R. Gorham (ed): Paraguay: Ecological Essays Acad. of Arts and Sciences, Miami.: 39-60.

Grubb, P. and Groves, C. P. 1993. The Neotropical peccaries: taxonomy and description. pp 5-7. In: Pigs, Peccaries and Hippos Status Survey and Action Plan. Ed. by W.L.R. Oliver. IUCN/SSC Pigs and Peccaries Specialist Group and IUCN/SSC Hippos Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland 202 pp.

I.U.C.N. 1988. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, U.K..

Mayer, J. J. and Brandt, P. N. 1982. Identity, distribution, and history of the peccaries, Tayassuidae. In: M. A. Mares and H. H. Genoways (eds.): Mammalian Biology in South America, Spec. Publ. Ser., Pymatuning Lab. of Ecol., Univ. Pittsburgh: 433-455.

Mayer, J. J. and Wetzel, R. M. 1989. Catagonus wagneri. Mammalian Species, 259: 1-5.

Morello, J. and Hortt, G. 1985. Changes in the areal extent of arable farming, stock raising and forestry in the South American Chaco. Appl. Geogr. Develop. (Tübingen), 25: 109-127.

Olrog, C. C., Ojeda, R. A. and Barquez, R. M. 1976. Catagonus wagneri (Rusconi) en el noroeste Argentino (Mammalia, Tayassuidae). Neotropica, 22: 53-56.

Ojeda, R. A. and Cajal, J. L. 1987. Tayasuidos de Argentina: reported sumario de su situacion global. (Unpubl.) rep. to TRAFFIC - Belgium: 13 pp.

Redford, K. H., Taber, A. B. and Simonetti, J. A. 1990. There is more to biodiversity than the tropical rain forests. In defence of non-rainforest ecosystems. Conserv. Biol. 4 (3): 328-330.

Sowls, L. K. 1984. The Peccaries. Univ. Arizona Press, Tucson: 251 pp.

Taber, A. B. 1989. Pig from green hell. Animal Kingdom, 92 (4): 20-27.

Taber, A. B. 1990. El Taguá, un Plan de Acción para su Conservación en el Paraguay. Editora Litocolor, Asunción, Paraguay: 34 pp.

Taber, A. B. 1991. The status and conservation of the Chacoan peccary in Paraguay. Oryx 25 (3): 147-155.

Tello, J. L. 1986. The situation of the wild cats (Felidae) in Bolivia; including notes on other wildlife species and on general aspects of the conservation and utilization of natural resources. (Unpubl.) rep. to the CITES Secretariat.

Unger, J. 1992. Report on the status of the tagua herd at the research station 'Proyecto Taguá. (Unpubl.) rep.: 14 pp.

Wetzel, R. M. 1977a. The extinction of peccaries and a new case of survival. Ann. New York Acad. Sci., 288: 538-544.

Wetzel, R. M. 1977b. The Chacoan peccary, Catagonus wagneri (Rusconi). Bull. Carnegie Mus. Nat. Hist., 3: 1-36.

Wetzel, R. M., and Crespo, J. A. 1976. Existencia de una tercera especie de pecari (Fam. Tayassuidae, Mammalia) en Argentina. Rev. Mus. Argentino Cienc. Nat. 'Bernadino Rivadavia.' Zool., (1975) 12: 25-26.

Wetzel, R. M., Dubos, R. E., Martin, R. L. and Myers, P. 1975. Catagonus, an 'extinct' peccary alive in Paraguay. Science, 189: 379-381.

 

 

 

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