All Topics  
Tayra

 
Tayra

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Tayra
 
 
  Topics Tayra Topic Home

The tayra (Eira barbara), also known as the Tolomuco or Perico ligero in Central America, is an omnivorous
Omnivore

Omnivores are species that eating both plants and animals as their primary food source. They are opportunistic, general feeders not specifically adapted to eat and digest either meat or plant material exclusively....
 animal from the weasel family Mustelidae
Mustelidae

Mustelidae or Mustelids , commonly referred to as the weasel family, is a family of carnivora mammals. The Mustelidae is a diverse family and the largest in the order Carnivora, at least partly because it has in the past been a catch-all category for many early or poorly differentiated taxa....
. It is the only species in the genus Eira. Tayras have an appearance similar to weasel
Weasel

Weasels are mammals in the genus Mustela of the Mustelidae family .Originally, the name "weasel" was applied to one species of the genus, the European form of the Least Weasel ....
s and marten
Marten

The Martens constitute the genus Martes within the subfamily Mustelinae, in family Mustelidae. They are slender, agile, animals, adapted to living in taigas, and are found in coniferous and northern deciduous forests across the northern hemisphere....
s, growing to a size of about 60 cm, not including a 45 cm long tail. Most tayras have either dark brown or black fur with a lighter patch on its chest.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Tayra'
Start a new discussion about 'Tayra'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


The tayra (Eira barbara), also known as the Tolomuco or Perico ligero in Central America, is an omnivorous
Omnivore

Omnivores are species that eating both plants and animals as their primary food source. They are opportunistic, general feeders not specifically adapted to eat and digest either meat or plant material exclusively....
 animal from the weasel family Mustelidae
Mustelidae

Mustelidae or Mustelids , commonly referred to as the weasel family, is a family of carnivora mammals. The Mustelidae is a diverse family and the largest in the order Carnivora, at least partly because it has in the past been a catch-all category for many early or poorly differentiated taxa....
. It is the only species in the genus Eira. Tayras have an appearance similar to weasel
Weasel

Weasels are mammals in the genus Mustela of the Mustelidae family .Originally, the name "weasel" was applied to one species of the genus, the European form of the Least Weasel ....
s and marten
Marten

The Martens constitute the genus Martes within the subfamily Mustelinae, in family Mustelidae. They are slender, agile, animals, adapted to living in taigas, and are found in coniferous and northern deciduous forests across the northern hemisphere....
s, growing to a size of about 60 cm, not including a 45 cm long tail. Most tayras have either dark brown or black fur with a lighter patch on its chest. The fur on its head changes to brown or gray as it ages. Tayras grow to weigh around 5 kilograms (11 pounds), ranging from 2.7 to 7.5 kg (6-16.5 pounds). The tayra, unlike other Mustelidae, does not have embryonic diapause
Embryonic diapause

Embryonic diapause or Delayed implantation is a reproductive strategy used by close to 100 different mammals in seven different order . In embryonic diapause, the embryo does not immediately implant in the uterus, but is maintained in a state of dormancy....
 otherwise known as delayed implantation (this reproductive strategy in other mustelids delays embryonic development and allows the female to delay birth of offspring until environmental factors are favorable). The female gives birth to 2 to 4 altricial
Altricial

Altricial, meaning "requiring nourishment", refers to a pattern of growth and development in organisms which are incapable of moving around on their own soon after hatching or being born....
, black-coated young.
Belize72
Tayras live in the tropical forests of Central America
Central America

Central America is a central geography region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmus portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast....
, South America
South America

South America is the southern continent of the Americas, situated entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere....
 and on the island of Trinidad
Trinidad

Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and islands of Trinidad and Tobago which make up the country of Trinidad and Tobago....
. They eat mainly fruit
Fruit

The term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. In botany, which is the scientific study of plants, fruits are the ripened Ovary of flowering plants....
, but also carrion, small mammal
Mammal

Mammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose name is derived from their distinctive feature, mammary glands, with which they feed their young....
s, reptiles, and bird
Bird

Birds are wing, Bipedalismal, endothermic , vertebrate animals that lay egg . There are around 10,000 living species, making them the most numerous tetrapod vertebrates....
s. They live in hollow trees, burrows in the ground, or nests of tall grass. They travel both alone and in groups during both the day and the night. Tayras are expert climbers, and can leap from treetop to treetop when pursued. They can also run fast and swim well. Tayras will eat most anything, hunting rodents and invertebrates, and climbing trees to get eggs and honey. They are attracted to fruit and can be found raiding orchards.

Tayras are playful and easily tamed. Indigenous people, who often refer to the tayra as "cabeza del viejo", or old man's head, due to their wrinkled facial skin, have kept them as household pets to control vermin. Wild tayra populations are slowly shrinking, especially in Mexico, due to habitat destruction for agricultural purposes. Though the species as a whole is listed as a Least Concern
Least Concern

Least Concern is an World Conservation Union category assigned to extant species or lower taxa which have been evaluated but do not qualify for any other category....
 species, the northernmost subspecies, Eira barbara senex, is listed as Vulnerable
Vulnerable species

A vulnerable species is a species which is likely to become Endangered species unless the circumstances threatening its survival and reproduction improve....
 by the IUCN.

Subspecies

  • Eira barbara barbara (northern Argentina, Paraguay, western Bolivia and central Brazil)
  • Eira barbara biologiae (central Costa Rica and Panama)
  • Eira barbara inserta (South Guatemala to central Costa Rica)
  • Eira barbara madeirensis (west Ecuador and northern Brazil)
  • Eira barbara peruana (the Andes in Peru and Bolivia)
  • Eira barbara poliocephala (Guyana, eastern Venezuela and Brazil)
  • Eira barbara senex (central Mexico to northern Honduras)
  • Eira barbara senilis (northern Ecuador)
  • Eira barbara sinuensis (Colombia and western Venezuela)