Hunting and Trapping Stories; a Book for Boys/About Tapirs and Capybaras

by J. P. Hyde Price

JAGUAR PULLING DOWN A TAPIR.

There are two animals, one large and the other small, living on the South American Continent that always seem to be having a hard time of it with the other creatures.

The Tapir is a large inoffensive sort of a creature, with a snout between an elephant and a pigs'. While shooting in a forest on the upper Amazon a hunter came across the fresh footprints of a tapir. He followed them for some time until he came to an open space among the trees. There he saw the tapir standing as still as though it were made of rock. The creature's back was towards him, and the hunter could see that the poor creature attention was riveted upon a huge serpent, only a few yards away from it. The hunter was tempted to fire as he very much wanted a tapir, but he waited awhile to see what would happen.

This hunter had been in many parts of the world, and from time to time he had been lucky enough to witness the most terrific battles between various wild creatures, and he knew that in fecorcity and cunning displayed they surpassed anything man has ever dreamed of.

The tapir could not take its eyes away from its dreaded enemy, while the great snake, on its part, was slowly coming down the tree trunk, each coil gliding so smoothly that the creature's body hardly seemed to be moving at all. The hunter thought each moment the snake would attack, but still it held off with the full consciousness of having its prey within its power.

Suddenly the hunter observed the grass swaying, only a few yards on one side of the snake, and the tapir observed it at the same instant. The movement served to break the spell, for the tapir turned quickly as if to run away. A second later the grasses parted and a splendid jaguar sprang with a roar upon the tapir. It all happened so quickly that the hunter was taken by surprise. Then a curious thing occured. The jaguar had made a very long spring and had not got as good grip upon its prey as it seemed. The ground was marshy and the tapir slipped, either by accident or with deliberate attempt; at any rate the jaguar was flung head over heels into the mud, and the tapir quickly scrambling to its feet, escaped. The jaguar gave vent to a roar of anger and prepared to follow its victim. The hunter saw his chance and quickly landed a bullet in the brute's neck. The jaguar turned on him in an instant, and before the hunter could step out of the way, for he too was standing over his ankles in mud, the brute knocked him flat on his back. He kept a grip on his rifle however and quickly getting on to his knees, sent a second bullet into the great cat, and this time the shot was fatal. The hunter's chest was torn by the jaguar's claws but he was not badly injured. It was

JAGUAR STALKING CAPYBARAS.

some hours before he reached his camp, so weak was he from loss of blood. The guides immediately went to bring in the jaguar's body, but they found it ruined, for the white ants were already at work. The claws and pads were were about the only parts worth saving.

The Capybara is another creature that seems to be hunted day and night by its enemies. It looks like a water hog but still it is a rodent, and the largest of the family.

One day a small herd of capybaras were slowly moving along the water's edge feeding quietly when suddenly they were attacked by a snake. In Brazil is found the largest snake in the world – the Anaconda. This reptile is usually about twenty or more feet long, but specimens have been found reaching a length of forty feet. It was an anaconda that was attacking our capybaras. Two of the creatures were caught, one in the snake's coils, and the other was killed by a blow on the head. The rest of the herd took to the water at once and swam across to the other bank. While they were in midstream they were attacked by alligators. First one vanished, then another until only two reached the opposite bank out of the orignial nine.

The jaguar hunts the capybara at all times and it is lucky that the little creature has large families, or it would soon become extinct. Sometimes the capybaras choose to live near a small lake where there are no alligators and then they are safe for they are splendid swimmers, and can stay under water from eight to twelve minutes. They know a trick like the crocodile and the hippopotamus, and that is they can come to the surface and only put out their nostrils to breath, and then dive again. In this way they are able to stay under water as long as they choose.

All snakes, and especially the Anaconda, are good swimmers. The anaconda however does not often attack the capybara while it is swimming. The little creature is more expert in the water than it is on land, and only it's aquatic equal could hope to seize it. If a jaguar comes near a herd of capybaras, they immediately run to the nearest water for the jaguar does not like to get its fur wet any better than the ordinary house cat. On more than one occasion, when a jaguar has been very close in persuit of a capybara, it has been fool enough to follow its prey into the water with the result that the capybara has made a deep dive, leaving its enemy on the surface, and then before the great cat could get to dry land it has had to reckon with a hungry alligator. The jaguar's teeth and claws make but little difference to the horned-armed reptile, and usually it is dragged beneath the surface in short order, and drowned.