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Capybara
Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris
Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassMammalia (Mammals)
- OrderRodentia (Rodents)
- FamilyCaviidae (Cavies)
- GenusHydrochoerus (Capybaras)
- SpeciesHydrochoerus hydrochaeris (Capybara)
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
59 Verified sightings at Tijuca National Park From 2019 to 2026
1,322 In all 11 parks
January Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted
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About the Capybara
The capybara (/kæp.ɪˈbɑːr.ə, -băr′ə/ kap-uh-BAR-uh) or greater capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) is the largest living rodent, native to all countries in South America except Chile. It is a semiaquatic herbivore that inhabits savannas and dense forests, living near and in bodies of freshwater and feeding mainly on grasses and aquatic plants.
Together with the lesser capybara, it constitutes the genus Hydrochoerus. Its other close relatives include guinea pigs and rock cavies, and it is more distantly related to the agouti, the chinchilla, and the nutria. The capybara is a highly social species that usually lives in groups of 10–20 individuals, but can be found in groups as large as 100. It is hunted for its meat and hide and for grease from its thick fatty skin.
Its common name is derived from Tupi ka'apiûara, a complex agglutination of kaá (leaf) + píi (slender) + ú (eat) + ara (a suffix for agent nouns), meaning "one who eats slender leaves", or "grass-eater". The genus name, hydrochoerus, comes from Greek ὕδωρ (hýdor "water") and χοῖρος (choíros "pig, hog") and the species name, hydrochaeris, comes from Greek ὕδωρ (hýdor "water") and χαίρω (chairo "feel happy... Wikipedia →
Sounds
Call0:05
Argentina · 2023
© Bernard BOUSQUET · XC1059461 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Recording0:04
Uruguay · 2023
© Santiago Ramos · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:20
Argentina · 2024
© catachan · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recent sightings of Capybara in Tijuca National Park
LIVEiNaturalistGlobal Distribution
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | El Palmar National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 2 | Iberá National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 3 | Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | Tambopata National Reserve | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 5 | El Impenetrable National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 6 | Manu National Park | 🇵🇪 Peru | |
| 7 | Yasuní National Park | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 8 | Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve | 🇪🇨 Ecuador | |
| 9 | Iguazú National Park | 🇦🇷 Argentina | |
| 10 | Tijuca National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 11 | Iguaçu National Park | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Cities Where Found
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Campo Grande | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 2 | Curitiba | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 3 | Recife | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 4 | João Pessoa | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 5 | Campinas | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 6 | Santa Cruz de la Sierra | 🇧🇴 Bolivia | |
| 7 | Brasilia | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 8 | Belém | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 9 | Rio de Janeiro | 🇧🇷 Brazil | |
| 10 | São Paulo | 🇧🇷 Brazil |
Zoos & Centres Where Found
Closest Relatives at Tijuca National Park
Before you go
What are the chances of seeing a Capybara in Tijuca National Park?
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Capybara sighting in Tijuca National Park on a given day, based on 59 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 5th most-seen of the 14 mammals we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
When is the best time to see a Capybara in Tijuca National Park?
January, August and October
In those months about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Capybara in Tijuca National Park on a given day, against about 10% in March and June, the lowest months.
What time of day is best to see a Capybara?
Between 3 and 6 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Capybara sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Is Tijuca National Park the best place to see a Capybara?
10th of 11
Of the 11 parks where we can rate Capybara sightings, Tijuca National Park ranks 10th at about 20%. The best odds are in El Palmar National Park (Argentina, about 90%), Iberá National Park (Argentina, about 80%) and Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas (Brazil, about 80%). All parks ranked.
Which relatives of the Capybara live in Tijuca National Park?
Same order: Rodentia
The closest relatives of the Capybara that you can see in Tijuca National Park (order Rodentia, Rodents) are Crested Agouti (about 10%), Paraguaian Hairy Dwarf Porcupine (about 10%) and Spotted Paca (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
Where does the Capybara sighting chance come from?
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Capybara is recorded against all the mammals logged in Tijuca National Park (59 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
