Countdown to Caplin Day: 2

Watery Whiskers

Melanie’s Post:

In case you hadn’t noticed, tomorrow is Caplin Day! Get out your popsicles, blueberries, swiss chard, spinach, pears, or other goodies beloved by capybaras and prepare to party! Don’t forget to jump in the pool and roll around. Or take a mud bath, if you prefer! It’s going to be a worldwide celebration.

There is not going to be a Countdown to Caplin Day: 1 because we will be out celebrating.

Today’s Countdown to Caplin Day is a count of some amazing capybara facts.

Lesser capybaras in Panama

Capybaras come in two species, the common capy and the lesser capy. All of the capybaras you see in zoos are common capybaras.
Capybaras have a lot of predators in the wild: jaguars, caiman, cougars, ocelots, harpy eagles, caracaras, and, worse of all, humans.
Wild capybaras seldom live to be over five years old. The record for a captive capybara is 18 years.
Capybaras have fourteen toes, four on each front foot and three on the back.
Capybaras have 20 teeth. Capybaras don’t lose their baby teeth, they keep growing as the capybara grows.
Capybaras live in herds with the males sharing in the care of the offspring.
Mother capybaras will nurse any babies in the herd, not just their own.
Capybaras really do get along with almost every time of animal. I suspect that is not true for jaguars.
Capybaras can, theoretically, hold their breath for five minutes. I believe the same is said of people but I doubt if you, dear reader, can do it.
Capybaras wrinkle their nose to close their nostrils while swimming underwater.
Mostly capybaras are diurnal (active in the day) or crepuscular (active mornings and evenings), except where they “coexist” with humans in which case they become nocturnal.
Mudskipper Rous is nocturnal. Caplin Rous and Garibaldi Rous were diurnal.
Pet capybaras bond very closely with their humans.
When a capybara decides to stay in bed you cannot make him/her move. Not mentioning any specific capybaras, but Mudskipper likes to sleep in.
Baby capybaras can swim on the first day they are born. This is not something Mudskipper knew when she was a baby.