TAPIRS: The Tapir Preservation Fund (TPF)

Metal Tapirs in the California Desert

2012-01-17T23:14:00.000-08:00

Near Borrego Springs, California ~ January 11, 2012

Photos by Patrick Tillett

What else would you expect to find in the California desert? Sidewinders? Tortoises? Jackrabbits? Although they don't belong here today, tapirs did roam this speck of earth when it was a very different place.

Dennis Avery, along with artist Ricardo Breceda, decided to bring back to Galleta Meadows an extinct form called Tapirus merriami, or Merriam's tapir, an ungulate that roamed these parts about a million years ago. Take a look at the illustration showing Merriam's tapir as it might have looked on the shores of Lake Borrego so far back in time. (Click on "The Shores of Lake Borrego" on their site if the tapir doesn't come up automatically.)

In poking about, I found a comment by Eric Scott after visiting the massive art installation in 2009. He liked it, but he thought it needed a few tapirs. Maybe someone listened, or maybe Eric missed the "noses." Apparently the massive display of animals is spread out so you come upon them in unexpected places.

Blogger friend Pat Tillet was surprised, and thanks to his penchant for finding weird stuff, we can all enjoy them. If you like to follow interesting daily adventures, you might want to take a look at his blog. It's a bit of travel, a bit of photography, bit of poetry, and some of the strangest personal stories I know. It's nicely written, and comments always acknowledged. It's one my favorite blogs. And you never know when the odd tapir will turn up.

Please e-mail your photos and text if you would like to see them on this blog.

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Harvard Tapirs: Of Toes and Ancient Taxidermy

2012-01-09T17:26:00.000-08:00

Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts ~
May 5, 2006

In May 2006 Lee and I visited Cambridge, and of course stopped to see the Museum of Natural History on the Harvard campus.

Harvard Museum of Natural History

That's Lee on the left wearing, appropriately, his howler monkey T-shirt from the Belize Zoo. As you can see by the sign on the door, it's just called the Museum of Natural History, but the building houses the prestigious Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology as well. The animal displays in this building are the "public face" of the Museum of Comparative Zoology. I didn't realize that the bulk of the MCZ collection was in another building (Agassiz Hall) or I would have tried to find it. How many times have I seen the time-honored initials MCZ in some interesting publication? As it was, we did find a few tapirs and their kin.

Amazingly, one of the first signs we saw had the word "tapir" on it. (Click on the image to enlarge the sign.)

Fossil Heptodon

Say "Hello" to Heptodon. If you'd like to compare skeletons with a modern tapir, see the re-posted photo of a Bairds tapir skeleton below. Remember, Heptodon is a 50-MILLION-year-old relative.

Baird's tapir skeleton in the Smithsonian,
photo by Carol Schaffer

Fossil skull of Heptodon

Sorry about the poor quality of the photo. It was pretty dark inside and I was using my 2006 camera. For comparison see a modern Baird's tapir skull re-posted below.

Cast of Baird's tapir skull

Here's Heptodon's front foot. It has five toes instead of the four toes you'll find on a tapir's front foot.

And here are Heptodon's rear feet with the three-toed structure similar to those of a modern tapir. Check out what the real tapir's skeletal foot looks like below.

Foot bones of a modern lowland tapir

As we entered another room, a hall of mammals, the real prize awaited. Who would have imagined that tapirs would occupy such a prominent place?

You could tell the tapir had been here a long time, but it didn't look too bad. Here you can see the tapir's back feet along with the back feet of the photographer.

The front end of the tapir . . . I was just trying to be complete. Also trying to avoid reflections, although they are intriguing.

Front foot of the Asian or Malayan tapir seen above

Here is the tapir's sign. It has the same common and scientific names we use today, although one of the countries has changed. Burma is now Myanmar.

Here's another surreal pic of the tapir with the museum background and the reflections suggesting random and creatively-juxtaposed thoughts. You can also see the photographer in the lower left.

Now here's where things begin to get weird. This is a mountain tapir (Tapirus pinchaque). Can you tell? Really? I love museums. I even love falling-apart old museums. Maybe especially those. And I even enjoy falling-apart museum exhibits, but this poor scraggly tapir took me aback and made me question the entire concept of putting him on display. In fact, it was mostly because I couldn't find the right context for this tapir that I hadn't posted the photos soon after our trip. I could have understood it as a display or commentary on the history of taxidermy or the history of animal collections in museums, or the history of museum collections in general, but I could not understand how this distorted creature had become a prominent feature on the "public face" of the Natural History Museum at a prestigious scientific institution. Granted, as I was collecting links for this post I discovered that the Museum of Comparative Zoology is upgrading. Until now I had no idea. In fact, I'm still not sure which part of the museum is upgrading, this building or only Agassiz Hall, nor do I know what the disposition will be of the mammals I saw on this day in 2006. But what immediately came to mind was an issue that has been troublesome to me for most of the past decade.

When the Museum of Natural History in London (not pictured here) was revamping its gorgeous halls sometime during the last ten years, they had to make decisions about whether to display their old (and I mean very old) taxidermied animals in the upgraded setting; and I learned that they were not planning to replace the faded and bedraggled animals. Some of them, including a baby lowland tapir, looked to be approximate contemporaries of the mountain tapir above. Are you kidding? I found this news puzzling and I wondered why they wouldn't consider displaying one that would give the public a better understanding of the living animal.

The curator replied - and I cannot understand it even today enough to put it into the proper words - they preferred a policy of using the old taxidermied animals rather than - how would you say it? - damaging? using up? compromising? another animal. What? I would certainly not condone taking an animal out of the wild or killing a living one for a museum exhibit, but how many tapirs have died in captivity since these ratty specimens became ready for the dustbin? Couldn't newer bodies undergo improved taxidermy without doing any harm?

Mountain tapir at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo,

Colorado Springs, Colorado

Photo by Sheryl Todd

Unless a person already knows tapirs, who is going to guess that the tapirs in the two photos above are of the same species? How could anyone possibly use the first tapir to any degree as a reference? You would never know that the mountain tapir has very prominent white fur around its mouth or that its coloring is reddish brown to black. How many thousands of people will visit this museum who will never get a chance to see living mountain tapirs in Los Angeles, Colorado Springs, San Francisco, Langley, B.C., Canada, or Cali, Colombia?

Continuing the tour, let's have a look at the feet of our mountain tapir.

I always wondered how women (or anyone) with two-inch nails could type. This poor tapir looks like it could have had an analogous problem just trying to walk. The foot of the Asian tapir (nine photos back) gives a better idea of the way a tapir's hooves should look.

The sign is quaint with its ancient information, which would be fine if this were a history of exhibits as mentioned above. Not so fine if you're trying to teach something in 2006 or 2012.

OK, here is the icing on the crumbling cake. Click on the sign and read the part about the toes. Reality disconnect. Count. The. Toes. The number of toes on a tapir is one of the most salient facts concerning what makes a tapir a tapir. The number of toes gives it its unusual classification as a perissodactyl. I wonder how many students over the decades have wondered if that fifth toe is vestigial, buried under the skin among the other bones of the foot? It is not. Had the sign given the correct number of toes, this tapir would have made a more confident comparison with its early relative, Heptodon, a scant few yards away in the other room.

Poor tapir. Poor students. Doesn't a display like this defeat the purpose of the time and money put into the exhibit by the museum in order to educate? I enjoyed my visit to this historic place. And I certainly hope the new museum does not decide to go the way of London, photos from which I will highlight another day.

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Tapir/Taper Story

2011-12-30T11:38:00.000-08:00

In 2012 I will continue to do massive scanning of my 40+ years worth of tapir files and attempt to put more of the results online than I did in 2011. There are all kinds of things in the file from articles to photos to who-knows-what. Yesterday I came upon this story sent to me in 2000. The person who sent it is all grown up now, but the story is still fun:

Date: Sun, 7 May 2000 18:20:17 EDT

Subject: Ungulate Observer

To: tapir@tapirback.com

I have a tapir story for you.

My family has always loved tapirs, and they are always the main reason we go to the zoo. One day, my dad came back from his run and told us a story. He had run up in the hills around our house, and had stopped to look at a house under construction. This is a very odd house, because it is a big bubble dome. He was looking, and then the owner of the house came by, and she said, "You can look around, but be careful, because there is a tapir around."

So my dad went and looked at the house, but he didn't see any tapirs. It was only then when he was telling it to us that he realized that the woman meant taper, as in one who tapes.

I'm not sure if this is the kind of story you want, because it doesn't involve real tapirs. My name is Spencer Easton, and I'm 13 (well, 14, in 6 days). I love your website, and have pictures of tapirs on my walls!

Spencer, I loved your story then and I still do. It's too bad it took me 11 years to get it online :-) Who knows what else I'll find in my files. . . .

~ Sheryl

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Carved Bloodwood Tapirs from Colombia

2011-12-19T10:33:00.000-08:00

Support conservation efforts with this unique, hand-carved collectible!

Our Bloodwood Animals

Palo de sangre is the Spanish name for this rich, red wood which is popular for making cultural handcrafts and art in South America. The English translation is "bloodwood." It is the heartwood of the trees Brosimum paraense and Brosimum rubescens. The sapwood is yellowish-white. According to Wikipedia, "Palo de sangre has a fine texture and takes a high polish. The wood is very hard and has a tendency to blunt tools. The wood is used in decorative woodworking and woodturning. The Nature Conservancy considers this tree secure within its native range." Other sources give additional names: muirapiranga, satiné rubane, cacique, and cardinalwood (due to its red color). It keeps its color, and does not turn brown with age like some highly colored woods. See our full selection of bloodwood ("palo de sangre") hand-carved animals from Colombia.

Palo de sangre is carved into wonderfully attractive and charming animal figures in Colombia and other regions of tropical America. The bright red color is a natural property of the wood, as is the highly finished shine on the surface (evidenced by the reflected light in the photo). These animals are not varnished, stained, or painted, but come to you in their spectacular natural finish. Fortunately, the artisans who carve them are not restricted by any means or conventions to a particular template, so you get the benefit of each individual's vision and creativity. The wood also varies somewhat from one carving to the next as far as natural color, grain, and markings. Although the individual item is different from all others, the motifs are repeated. For example, crocodiles and manatees are more common; and tapirs are less common. We may be able to get several tapirs this month and none next month, for example. Or we may be able to get small otters one month and only large otters the next. We decided to show you each and every animal we have available, and you can order by the number. You will receive the exact item you see on the web site. The only order option for quantity is one per item, as no two are alike. These carved wood animals are imported to the US by the Tapir Preservation Fund. Your purchase helps support conservation of tapirs and their habitat.

Tapirs of Colombia

Colombia is the only country that is home to more than two species of tapir. Three distinct species and one subspecies inhabit the country. Mountain tapirs live in one chain of the Andes mountains, lowland tapirs live in much of the jungle (eastern) area of Colombia, and a very few Baird's tapirs live in the far north near the Isthmus of Panama. There is also a subspecies of lowland tapir called the Colombian tapir living in an isolated area called Santa Marta. Colombia is still a frontier for tapir discoveries. The Colombian tapir, a subset of the lowland tapir, was believed by some to be a distinct subspecies, but it was only clearly distinguished as such in the past few years. Some people believe that Baird's tapir, which can be found in a small pocket in the north of Colombia also ranges down the dense, barely-accessible western coast. There have been reports of sightings or tracks of Baird's tapir in the west, but no definitive evidence has been brought to light. We hope that Baird's tapir will be someday be identified for certain as living along Colombia's west coast.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Tapir Skull at Point Defiance Zoo

2011-11-26T16:26:00.000-08:00

August 27, 2006 ~ Tacoma, Washington

Point Defiance Zoo

There was a tapir skull on display outside the Asian tapir enclosure at Point Defiance Zoo on one of my trips up there in 2006. Tapir skulls are interesting and there was a nice young woman giving info to anyone who would listen, explaining points about the skull. Notice the huge area between the top of the jaw and that small triangle of bone above it. This is the space necessary for all the passages and muscles of the tapir's nose.

Click on any photo to enlarge.

The eye socket is not enclosed, but is wide open towards the back of the head. This is a primitive form not seen in many mammals.

Check out the inside of the nasal cavity. I'm not sure what those parallel ridges are for. And check out the guy in the corner. See what I mean about the eye sockets being different?

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Beaded Baby Tapir from Guatemala

2011-11-17T11:12:00.000-08:00

New in our online store . . .

Our Beaded Baby Tapir

It was another one of those very lucky days when Catherine Todd (same last name, no relation) contacted me about taking some of our plastic animals to Guatemala so the artisans could craft beaded animals with the plastic replicas as a realistically-shaped base. The subject at hand was camels, but we thought it would be fun to make some beaded tapirs as well. Imagine my delight when these cute animals came back in the mail, their plastic bodies covered in shiny seed beads stitched together into a brand new creation. You don't find beaded tapirs just anywhere, trust me! I've looked! When you purchase one of these unique animals from our collection, you help in a number of ways. You help save tapirs, because that's what we do. You help the local artisans in Guatemala who need an outlet for their work (yes, jobs!), and you help my new friend Catherine with her sustainable business of working with the artisans of Guatemala to maintain jobs for themselves and make beautiful art for many people around the world to enjoy. Check out our other tapir items as well as our page of beaded animal art!

About Baby Tapirs

Baby tapirs are some of the most adorable and engaging animals on Earth! There are four species of tapir, and the babies of all species are marked with their distinguishing spots and stripes. The stripes on our beaded baby tapir do not match those of any particular species, so you can imagine it's whichever species you like best. Baby tapirs are quite friendly and lovable. They can stand and walk almost immediately, and they quickly begin to explore their world with amusing curiosity. It takes a gestation period of about 13 months for a pair to produce one baby. Can you believe that? It's one of the longest gestation periods among mammals. Even horses give birth after about 11 months. Because only one baby is born per pregnancy, and because the gestation period is so long, the tapirs are said to have a long "recruitment period." This means that for every tapir that is killed in the wild (or that dies of natural causes), it takes a very long time to replace that animal. This is one reason why hunting and destruction of habitat are so devastating to the Earth's dwindling population of tapirs. You can purchase this beaded tapir, take it home, and be proud not only to have a beautiful, unique, hand-made work of art, but also to know that your purchase keeps the Tapir Preservation Fund going so we can support tapir conservation in the field.

Please e-mail your photos and text if you would like to see them on this blog.

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Emergency Room Tapir

2011-11-04T13:35:00.000-07:00

Astoria, Oregon ~ March 3, 2011

You never know where you're going to find a tapir! Fortunately, I had my cell phone with me and it had a camera.

I had the worst flu or cold of my life - or whatever kind of bug it was - in late February and early March of this year, and on March 3rd I took myself to the Emergency Room to figure out why I felt so bad. As it turned out, I had a freaky reaction to Tylenol PM and I was having something just short of panic attacks. Since I wasn't seriously ill or damaged, it took them over three hours to get around to processing my tests. Meanwhile, look who was there to keep me company! Under the circumstances, I was especially glad to have the little tapir by my side.

I don't know who got the idea to paint a mural with a TAPIR of all things in the temperate lands of northwestern Oregon, but we are, after all, in a rainforest, albeit different from the one where this little Asian tapir lives in real life.

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A Mountain Tapir at Home

2011-10-19T14:08:00.000-07:00

Check out this short video from Armando Castellanos' Mountain Tapir Project in Ecuador.

If you ever wondered what mountain tapir country is really like . . . be amazed! Also, check out the sidebar for a video of a mountain tapir mother and baby in the wild (or see it here).

You can follow Armando and his projects on Facebook.

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Tapirs at Macoa

2011-09-14T07:09:00.000-07:00

Photo copyright Lee Spangler 2011

With only a few minutes available online, Lee sent me two out of about 50 photos he took of several lowland tapirs frolicking in the waters of the reserve at Macoa, Colombia. The description he gave over Skype was almost completely unexpected! (And we thought tapirs only lounged around trying to catch some zzzzs?) I'd only noted some of the behaviors once or twice during my 40+ years of watching or reading about these animals, and I hadn't heard about other behaviors at all. It was truly fascinating to hear first-hand, and I'll get him to elaborate for us once he has more time. Meanwhile, check out Lee's post on his own blog, "Lee's Daily Adventure." You'll see a couple more shots of these guys. Click on the top photo of Lee's post and notice how hard it's raining! The tapirs loved it. I remember my own tapir, Stanley K., looking to the sky and opening his mouth wide when it would rain. Lee didn't report this behavior, but you'll enjoy hearing the story when he has more time online. Check it out.

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Leaving for Colombia

2011-09-13T07:33:00.000-07:00

On September 8, Lee Spangler left Portland, Oregon, for a month-long trip to Colombia, where he joins experienced naturalist Emilio Constantino for a fascinating ecotour adventure searching out unique flora, fauna, vistas, and cultures. Not the least of his hopes is to see a tapir in the wild. Colombia is the only country in the world that is home to all three American species: mountain tapir, lowland tapir, and (far in the north and hard to reach) a small population of Baird's tapirs. I'll be continuing to post bits of Lee's adventures here on the TPF blog, but you can read and follow along by clicking on the links below. Be sure to sign up for e-mail delivery of Lee's blog posts. He'll post when he can, but since connectivity outside of major towns is very limited, he won't be posting every day. Thanks for checking in, and here are a couple of links to get you started!

Lee's Daily Adventure
. First post from the trip; note the cool luggage tag
. Mountain tapir country

Emilio's nature photos on Facebook (There are MANY - check them out! Emilio currently has 68 albums posted!)

The Tapir Preservation Fund and Lee chipped in together to get Emilio a new pair of binoculars. His old ones had endured seven years of extensive use, and he assures me he hopes to get seven more years out of the new pair. Whether they last that long or not remains to be seen. What we know is, the 42-power zoom will reveal many wonders of nature. Stay tuned . . . let's see what they turn up!

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Lowland Tapirs at Chester Zoo, England

2011-03-19T12:25:00.000-07:00

All photos on this page copyright Mary Beaird 2007.

Our thanks to Mary for loaning us these photos of Chester Zoo's mom and baby lowland tapir. Chester Zoo has a long history of raising and breeding this species of tapir, allowing fans to see and learn about tapir babies every couple of years.

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How to Make Tapir Tracks

2011-02-14T08:33:00.000-08:00

Point Defiance Zoo, Washington

August 26, 2006

In this display, the Point Defiance Zoo shows how they made the tapir tracks used as an educational feature in their pavement. See this post for the tracks.

I left this photo large so when you click on it, you should be able to read the text. Click once, then click again for the full-size image.

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Tapir Tracks at Point Defiance Zoo

2011-01-30T20:15:00.001-08:00

Tacoma, Washington ~ August 27, 2006

Point Defiance Zoo

Some of the things you find on the pavement are just unique. It almost made my day when I looked down and found tapir tracks embedded in the concrete at Point Defiance (only "almost" because we still had the real tapirs to visit). Zoos are doing a lot more these days to enhance the educational and fun value of the grounds as well as creating interesting habitat for what's inside the enclosures.

Pictured above is a tapir's rear footprint. Since the zoo has Asian tapirs, I'm assuming they took a mold from their Asian tapirs to use when they poured the concrete - and anyway, the footprint of each species has its own conformation. An Asian tapir print might possibly be confused with a Baird's tapir, but probably not with the other two species. The hind foot of every tapir species has three toes, and each toe is encased in its own separate hoof. Interesting, yes? Tapirs have feet that are totally unique in the animal world.

Now it gets even more interesting. Here you see a hind foot (below) with the forefoot superimposed over it, obliterating part of the track. This is a typical footprint pattern of tapirs. Note that the front foot has the prints of four toes. All tapirs have four toes on each front foot, but sometimes the tracks imprint in such a way as to make it appear that there are five toes. The tapir is not the only animal that steps in its own tracks. Check out these prints of big cat footprints, too.

See tapir feet here and tapir footprints here. Thanks, Point Defiance Zoo, for making your pavement so interesting and educational!

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Lowland Tapir Art in Manaus

2011-01-28T18:48:00.000-08:00

Manaus, Brazil ~ April 23, 2004

This beautifully-drawn picture of a lowland tapir was hanging in the buffet area of the Tropical Manaus hotel. I didn't catch the name of the artist, unfortunately. It's hard to know whether to call it a painting or a drawing - it employs paint, for sure, but the exquisite quality of the line makes it especially appealing. I'm sorry I wasn't able to get a better photo under the circumstances.

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A Tapir Christmas Card

2010-12-19T15:21:00.000-08:00

This just in from Mark and Carol Reid in Canada. Cute Christmas tapirs in the snow. The note accompanying the picture says,

Hi Sheryl;

Just wanted to send you our on-line Christmas greetings with the wish that you and yours have a great holiday. Carol and I just got back from a walk and spotted a couple of our indigenous Canadian tapirs playing in the backyard. They asked us to say hello and ask if you wanted any snow for your Christmas ... we have plenty to spare!

All the Best,

Mark and Carol

Um, OK, I'm not sure I believe all that, but it's always great to hear from you guys!

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New Mountain Tapir Figurine

2010-10-06T20:27:00.000-07:00

Sergio Sandoval made this adorable and accurate model of a mountain tapir recently. You can read more about it on Sergio's blog. Hopefully, before long this tapir will be coming to the U.S. to visit us in our online animal store, where sales will help benefit research and conservation of endangered tapirs.

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Ronnie Tapir and the Capybara

2010-09-30T13:27:00.000-07:00

Dudley Zoo, Dudley, West Midlands, England ~

February 16, 2010

Ronnie (a young lowland tapir) notices something . . .

. . . which happens to be a capybara nibbling on tree bark.

. . . and the capybara notices Ronnie.

Tapirs are curious . . . so let's check it out.

Hmmm. Interesting.

Even more interesting. I wonder what the capybara was eating. I have no idea if baby tapirs learn in the same way as baby bears, but I watched a movie in which it was shown that baby bears learned which foods were edible by smelling mom's breath while she was eating. I wonder if tapirs do the same thing, or if Robbie was just responding to an intersting odor?

It seems quite fascinating to the baby tapir . . .

. . . though less so to the capybara!

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Meena and Baby at Dudley Zoo

2010-09-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

Dudley Zoo, Dudley, West Midlands, England ~
February 16, 2010
Lowland tapirs Meena (the mom) and baby Ronnie

When we were in England last February, it was impossible not to stop in at Dudley Zoo in the West Midlands. I've posted pictures of the incredibly picturesque Dudley Castle, around which the zoo is built, but I have not begun to post my zoo and tapir pictures until today. We had an amazing visit, not only because there was a baby tapir, but thanks to zoo owners, staff, and especially tapir keeper Laura Robbins (whose hand you see here coaxing the tapirs out of their stall), this was one of the pleasantest zoo visits I've had in my many years of visiting zoos. The weather was perfect, the people delightful, and the tapirs, of course, too adorable for words. I took many photos and will be posting them here - hopefully several per week. I'll mix it up a little, but the main theme for the moment will be the tapirs of Dudley Zoo.

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A Tapir that Doesn't Like Water?

2010-09-23T12:49:00.000-07:00

I've borrowed this photo from Anthony Long and World Tapir Day on Facebook. To see more of the series and see the interesting (and funny) story, check out World Tapir Day on Facebook. Because it's impossible to make a link directly to the date it was posted, you may have to scroll down the feed to September 23, 2010.

Or . . . here is a link directly to the album.

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Beautiful Mountain Tapir Photo by Diego Lizcano

2010-09-16T14:11:00.000-07:00

Photo copyright Diego J. Lizcano

The mountain tapir was was featured as the daily photo for August 18, 2010 on this post on the Bush Warriors blog. Their blog's subtitle, "Stop Poaching and Bushmeat," is one of their important messages. The Bush Warriors' aim is to raise awareness of the "war against some of the most endangered species on our planet." As they noted, the mountain tapir along with Diego's photo had been featured as the IUCN Species of the Day. Diego J. Lizcano, a long-time tapir conservationist and researcher, and is a member of the IUCN/SSC Tapir Specialist Group. Check out the Bush Warriors blog for some truly exceptional photos of animals in the wild.

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Lion Country Lowland Tapir (with Friends)

2010-09-15T22:35:00.000-07:00

Photo by Sheryl Todd

January 13, 2008

This lowland tapir at Lion Country Safari near Miami, Florida, is happy hanging out with several species of larger birds. Tapirs not only tolerate, but usually seem to enjoy the company of other animals, find them entertaining, and have been known to miss them when separated.

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Nose to the Ground

2010-09-11T14:17:00.000-07:00

It is always fun to see animals depicted on postage stamps. In this case, a lowland (Brazilian) tapir appears to be nibbling its way across the former British Hondurus, modern day Belize. Unfortunately the stamp designer has chosen the wrong species and placed this South American "mountain cow" in the domain of the Baird's tapir. We are consoled that at least someone has bothered to memoralize a tapir at all. Tapir and Friends Animal Store has an outstanding selection of tapir items. Plastic tapirs and stuffed tapirs are usually Malayan or Asian tapir replicas, but we have knitted tapirs representing each species and unique t-shirt designs as well.

by Lee

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TPF Awards $1,000.00 Grant to Emilio Constantino's Conservation Project in the Colombian Orinoco

2010-09-09T13:36:00.000-07:00

Photo copyright Emilio Constantino

The Tapir Preservation Fund (TPF) is pleased to announce the winning project for our July-August 2010 call for proposals. The project, "Saving the Orinoco Tapirs in Eastern Colombia," is part of a larger initiative, "Saving Wildlife in the Colombian Orinoco," targeted to protect habitat and numerous threatened wildlife species in the region designated by the project through education, assessment, and the management of private reserves. TPF's "Heidi Frohring Memorial Fund" award of $1,000.00 will help Emilio work toward these goals.

Please read more about this award and the project on the new blog TPF is helping to maintain as part of our contribution to Emilio's work in the Orinoco of Colombia's eastern plains.

Our special thanks to the W.O. and G.L. Frohring Foundation for making this award possible.

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Skull of Baird's Tapir

2010-09-07T18:05:00.000-07:00

This is actually a cast, and not the real skull of Baird's tapir (Tapirus bairdii). I took the photo at the Museum of Natural History in San Diego. I thought the exhibits there were excellent, and I wrote quite a bit about the museum experience on today's Animal Art Along the Way blog post.

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Watch Your Manners!

2010-09-02T15:18:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday, the Tapir Preservation Fund took a field trip to the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma, Washington, to observe the resident pair of Malayan or Asian tapirs. It was so much fun to listen to the many visitors incorrectly identify our burly friends as large pigs. Then again in this picture the female, with her tongue hanging out, is "hamming it up" or just acting like a ... you know what!. Tapir and Friends Animal Store has a large variety of Asian tapir items, especially plastic tapirs, knitted tapirs, and stuffed tapirs. Of course tapirs are not remotely related to pigs, but are more closely associated with rhinos and horses.

Posted by Lee

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Counting Noses!

2010-09-01T15:15:00.000-07:00

Near, where the Tapajos River pours into the Amazon in Central Brazil, there is the tourist town of Alter do Chao that has reputely the most beautiful beach in all of Brazil. In a special shop which sells exclusively native craft, I found this wooden lowland tapir replica which I felt would be treasured by Sheryl, the owner of Tapir and Friends Animal Store. There were no small wooden tapir replicas to send back for Tapir and Friends Animal Store, but Sheryl has just received a shipment of beautifully-detailed plastic tapir replicas and sells a variety of other tapir products. It is difficult to find tapir items to sell other than the Asian tapir replicas , but the store has some lovely t-shirts and knitted tapirs which depict the South American and Central American species.

written by Lee

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The Tapir Fund Found a New Plastic Tapir For Your Collection

2010-08-25T15:00:00.000-07:00

Plastic Asian (Malayan) Tapir

Our plastic museum-quality version of the Asian or Malayan tapir has the markings of a real tapir. The "saddle" which extends from its shoulder to its rump, the white rimmed ears, and the remaining black hair covering the legs, chest, and head mimic the pattern designed for camouflage. The plastic Asian tapir measures 4 1/4 inches in length, and 2 1/2 inches high. The realistic "floppy" snout, four-toed front and three-toed back feet (with a little hoof at the end of each toe) help make this the most realistic toy tapir we've ever seen. Other features include the white rims around each small hoof and the strongly chiseled indentation of the face muscles. Even the nostrils appear to flatten as they do in a real tapir. It even has short markings in the plastic indicating its fur coat. This delightful model will complete your diorama or please any tapir collector or collector of animal figurines. You may already be familiar with the quality produced by Safari, Ltd. This sturdy piece will also withstand handling and playtime. See our entire collection of tapirs.

About Asian (Malayan) Tapirs

Malayan tapirs (Tapirus indicus) grow to between 6 and 8 feet in length, stand 3 to 3.5 feet tall, and typically weigh between 550 and 700 pounds. Like the other types of tapir, they have small stubby tails and long, flexible proboscises. They have four toes on each front foot and three toes on each back foot. The Malayan Tapir has rather poor eyesight but excellent hearing and sense of smell. The easily identifiable markings (the saddle, white rimmed ears, black legs, chest, and head) make it more difficult to recognize it as a tapir, and other animals may mistake it for a large rock rather than a form of prey when it is lying down to sleep. Malayan Tapirs communicate with high-pitched squeaks and whistles. They usually prefer to live near water and often bathe and swim, and they are also able to climb steep slopes. Malayan Tapirs can live up to 30 years, both in the wild and in captivity. Malayan tapirs live in Southest Asia, where they have become extinct in some of their range; small populations still survive in Myanmar, Thailand, and Sumatra (Indonesia). In the past, scientists believed that tapirs live solitary lives, but in recent years, it has become clear that they can be found in small family groups. They do not live in herds, and are hard to located in the forest. Under ideal conditions, a tapir gives birth about every 18 months to two years, bearing only one calf at a time. The slow "recruitment rate" is one of the several reasons they are on their way to extinction. Read more about Malayan tapirs here.

Come see our new plastic tapir in our animal store!

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Leather Tapir Keyring from Italy

2010-08-23T08:21:00.000-07:00

What should show up in the mail one day but this beautiful leather tapir keyring that Mark and Carol Reid found while visiting Italy. The text on the bottom says "Cuoeria Fiorentina." The link goes to their site, but the site looks pretty new, and I don't see the tapir (yet, anyway).

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Call for Proposals ~ July-August 2010

2010-07-15T10:33:00.000-07:00

Tapir Preservation Fund (TPF)

Call for Proposals, July-August 2010
$1,000.00 will be awarded in September 2010

We want to thank the family of the late Heidi Frohring for their generous donation of $1,000.00 from the W.O. and G.L. Frohring Foundation to the Tapir Preservation Fund (TPF). This donation has allowed TPF's perpetual Heidi Frohring Memorial Fund to enact the current call for proposals, which will result in the award of $1,000.00 to a tapir conservation project selected by TPF in September. We expect the successful outcome of this call for proposals to become a model for future fundraising and grants by TPF, and we look forward to receiving your proposals.

PARTICULARS

. Proposals will be accepted by e-mail to tapir@tapirback.com through July and August 2010, and must be submitted in English. The final date for submission is August 31. You may also submit any questions to this e-mail address.

. A $1,000.00 award will be granted to one selected project in September 2010.

. TPF will be allowed to use your photos and agreed-upon materials for promotion of your work and of TPF. You retain copyright to all of your materials and photos. TPF will help support your project in various ways via the Internet. Reciprocal links will be exchanged if you have a web site, blog or Facebook Page about your work.

. The Tapir Preservation Fund and the Heidi Frohring Memorial Fund will be acknowledged in any publications and materials resulting from this grant.

. A progress report with photos will be submitted within a "reasonable" period after receiving the award (report date to be determined depending on the project). The sooner TPF receives photos and progress reports, the sooner we can help promote your project.

. A final report with photos will be submitted within a "reasonable" time of completing the project (report date to be determined depending on the project).

REQUIREMENTS

1. Must be an active tapir/habitat conservation project that may have a large education component.

2. Must be

a) Ongoing and currently running, or

b) Funding needs can be completed with $1,000.00 from this grant, or
c) Your entire project can be completed with $1,000.00 from this grant, or

d) $1,000.00 from this grant will allow you to implement a segment of the project that will produce tangible results.

3. Please mention any need for permits when submitting the proposal, and note whether these permits have already been secured.

PRIORITY WILL BE GIVEN TO PROJECTS WHICH FIT THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA

1. Focus on tapirs or tapir habitat with priority given to projects encompassing conservation of additional animal and plant species and their mutual habitat

2. Sustainability

3. Ability to replicate project or results

4. Supports indigenous and/or local people in conservation efforts

5. Demonstration of coordination with other organizations and projects to reduce duplication of efforts.

We look forward to receiving your proposals and having the opportunity to help make your conservation ideas and goals a reality. Submissions may be made by e-mail.

Sheryl Todd

President

Tapir Preservation Fund

PO Box 118

Astoria, Oregon 97103 USA

tapir@tapirback.com

(503) 338-8646

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Cute Tapir, Wrong Costume

2010-07-11T10:33:00.000-07:00

Artwork © Diana Lapshina

I just received this cute drawing from Russian tapir fan Valeri Volodin.

He wrote, "Hi Sheryl, I've just found a funny tapir picture from a Russian childrens' book about Latin America. But I think it's a Malayan tapir. Doesn't look like an American. Enjoy! Best regards, Valeri"

Tapirs appear in books so rarely (although the frequency is improving) that it's always good to see them. Valeri is right, the white saddle belongs to the Malayan tapir (from Asia), although the body coloring of that species is black, not pale brown.

Here is a link to the book, which will open as a PDF file. See also the tapir on page 2. . . .

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Corinna's Cat Toys Help Raise Funds for Tapir Conservation

2010-07-08T11:48:00.000-07:00

This Malayan tapir is one of Corinna Bechko's famous cat toys. She makes the most imaginative things for cats to play with! You can find this tapir and many astonishing pieces of functional art for cats (a "cat's guide to fossils"? Amazing!) and for humans (jewelry, boxes, etc., etc.) in Corinna's Etsy shop, The Frog Bag. You can also find The Frog Bag on Facebook and by going to The Frog Bag's blog.

Yesterday Corinna and The Frog Bag donated $50.00 to the Tapir Preservation Fund. This donation came from sales in the Etsy shop, and brought The Frog Bag's donations to a total of $550.00!

Corinna has had a long-standing interest in tapirs and has been a supporter of tapir conservation long before The Frog Bag came into existence. She also contributes to tapir conservation by letting us sell her wonderful animal jewelry in Tapir and Friends Animal Store online. Here you can find tapirs and other critters, too.

Thanks, Corinna! And thanks to those who purchase and enjoy your wonderful creations!

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Contribution Helps Tapirs in Belize

2010-06-17T11:48:00.000-07:00

Belize Zoo ~ June 1, 2010

Sharon Matola with baby Baird's tapir

Today we are excited to be sending a donation of $500.00 from David F. to The Belize Zoo. When Sharon learned about the donation, she sent us this photo of herself with one of the zoo's most recent residents, an adorable baby Baird's tapir. The zoo accepts only orphaned or damaged animals, and although this tapir has lost his biological mother, he now has a loving home as an ambassador for wildlife in the Belize Zoo. He may just become the hero of a children's story in the coming months. It would not be the first time Sharon has featured tapirs and the other wild animals of Belize in stories that have made a huge and continuing impact on the way Belizeans and visitors to Belize understand and appreciate the ecology of this small, Central American country.

David's donation will help Sharon pay for a recent project - the completion of a film about the important role that tapirs and other animals of the forests play, standing and healthy, in decreasing the negative impacts of climate change.

Thank you, David. Thank you, Sharon. We are happy to forward 100% of David's donation to help make this happen.

Donations for the important work of the Belize Zoo can be made through the Tapir Preservation Fund or through the Belize's Zoo's web site.

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Sleeping Tapirs

2010-06-17T08:14:00.000-07:00

Singapore Zoo ~ March 23, 2008

Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus)

Photos by Annemarie Hasnain

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Tapir Tongue

2010-05-27T23:52:00.000-07:00

Los Angeles Zoo ~ March 26, 2010

Mountain tapir (Tapirus pinchaque)

Photos by Annemarie Hasnain

In this unusual photo, the tapir's tongue is rippled like a washboard. I can't do that, can you? The next two photos are also of a mountain tapir at the L.A. Zoo, where this species has been kept since the late 1960s.

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Browsing

2010-05-26T01:06:00.000-07:00

Singapore Zoo ~ June 21, 2009

Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus)

Photo by Annemarie Hasnain

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A Friendly Baird's Tapir at La Marina Wildlife Rescue Center

2010-05-23T14:02:00.000-07:00

La Marina Wildlife Rescue Center, Costa Rica ~ June 21, 2009

Baird's tapir (Tapirus bairdii)

Photos by Annemarie Hasnain

Annemarie wrote: "I've attached photos of a tapir we met at La Marina Wildlife Rescue Center in Costa Rica. He/She saw us and came across his enclosure to hang out with us. He was so sweet and curious and just seemed to enjoy checking us out as much as we enjoyed checking him out. It was a very special part of the trip!"

Check out this link to the tapir page at the rescue center and enjoy the photos. Maybe you will be the next volunteer!

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A Shelf of Tapir Art

2010-05-22T07:30:00.000-07:00

Astoria, Oregon ~ October 21, 2001

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Reflections in a Tapir's Eye

2010-05-02T14:30:00.000-07:00

Seattle, Washington ~ May 5, 2008

Woodland Park Zoo

Malayan tapir (Tapirus indicus)

I'm posting these photos today to take part in James's Weekend Reflections, but I've been meaning to post them for some time. It's not often that you get to see a tapir eye this closely. The glass-fronted enclosure allows you to see the tapirs very close much of the time. The white blobs on the right side of the second photo are unfocused reflections of a "T is for Tapir" t-shirt, white on black, although the tapir on the shirt is a different species (Baird's tapir) from the one in the photos above (Malayan tapir).

I also find it so strange and somehow both comforting and frightening to look at an animal's eye this closely. How can we think of harming, neglecting, killing, or eradicating an animal who looks out of something that reminds us so much of our own eyes? We are kindred. How can we think otherwise?

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Remembering Heidi

2010-05-01T02:52:00.000-07:00

Heidi Frohring

April 6, 1967 - May 1, 2005

Memorial site / Memorial page

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Visit to Dudley Zoo

2010-04-04T10:32:00.000-07:00

Click here for the article

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Bones of a Lowland Tapir's Foot

2010-03-30T15:33:00.000-07:00

Buenos Aires, 1966

Click to image to enlarge

Lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris)

Left forefoot (left) and rear foot (right)

Thanks to a query about the bones of a tapir's feet, I found an old poster in my archives and photographed part of it. I'll put the rest of the poster online when I get a chance. Note that the feet of the four tapir species may show differences, as may the feet of individual animals.

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Three Photos from France to Help Raise Awareness for World Tapir Day, 2010

2010-03-29T23:27:00.000-07:00

Photos by MJP

(Mr and Msse POTEAUX ~ e Mans, FRANCE)

CERZA Zoo Park in Hermival-les-Vaux, Calvados, Normandy

Three wonderful tapir photos arrived by e-mail today with the message that we could use them on the site to help publicize World Tapir Day, 2010.

Please enjoy the photos and follow the link to learn more about World Tapir Day and take part in the activities and fundraising! And, many thanks to you in Le Mans. . . .

The Poteaux family sponsors these lovely tapirs and visits them often.

Merci infiniment des belles photos!

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Jan 10, 2010: Snow Tapir!

2010-01-10T15:27:00.000-08:00

By David Beilby

Originally posted on "Tapirs" Google group

January 10, 2010

David wrote:

Here in the UK we have had much more snow than we have most winters. My son Jonathan decided to fashion this creation which is sadly even more endangered than the real thing.

Hopefully this will brighten up your winter's day!

Best Regards,

David Beilby

Reply by Sheryl:

Hey, I even see a carrot! Thanks so much for posting this! We're having a cold winter, too, but no snow yet in Astoria, Oregon. Lots of rain, and no snow tapirs! In fact, this may be a first. I've seen a sandcastle tapir done by Sally Woodcock. It seems you English are advanced when it comes to these creations. . . .

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Tapir Preservation Fund (TPF) ~ Catching up on donations and funding ~ What have we been doing?

2009-12-16T15:11:00.000-08:00

A recent e-mail from Caitlin gave me the excuse I needed to post some numbers and an explanation:

December 16, 2009

Dear Caitlin,

Thank you for asking what we've been doing in 2009, since the Tapir Gallery Web site has not been updated recently. It seems that the last thing I get around to is putting current info on the site. This is truly unfortunate, and it should be done regularly. We've been keeping busy over here, as you'll see in a minute. I kept looking for a good format for donation and disbursement info on the site, and came up with several formats that didn't really work. The format is hard to understand and is incomplete. At least I should put it on the info on the blog, and I do have some clarity for public announcements in 2010. For now, here it is what I have for the past four years.

None of the years addressed on the web site as it is right now reflects the whole picture. Here are the actual totals going back to 2006:

2006

. Contributions income: $3,452

. Donations from TPF to the field: $2,700

The difference was used by the Tapir Preservation Fund internally.

2007

. Contributions income: $10,415

. Donations from us to the field: $19,492

The difference was paid from our gift shop sales.

2008

. Contributions income: $4,972

. Donations from TPF to the field: $17,467

The difference was paid from our gift shop sales.

2009 Year to Date (Dec 16)

. Contributions income: $3,261

. Donations to the field: $2,951

We still have money to send to the field, see below.

2009's donations went to:

. Wilson Novarino (Sumatra, Asian tapir)

. Sergio Sandoval (Colombia, Mountain tapir genetics)

. Kendra Bauer (USA/Costa Rica, Baird's tapir)

We will soon be sending over $1,000 to two projects, one of which is still to be determined.

What we've been doing with our time this year is that we've been improving the gift shop. We installed a new shopping cart to be up with the times (and our old one was discontinued by the credit card company), and that was a huge effort getting everything to work right. We've been upgrading the store in many ways and trying to make ends meet in the slow economy. Hopefully this next year I'll have time to work more on the tapir web site and also work more with various tapir colleagues working in the field. I have ideas for new fundraising projects, and I may think about bringing back Club Tapir once the economy begins to recover. It became more time-consuming than it was worth for the amount we collected in donations.

Many thanks to all of you who have helped with your ideas, photos, and donations!

Here's to a creative, productive, and prosperous 2010 for everyone. . . .

All the best,

Sheryl

Is this too cute? Baby Malayan tapir photos from Antwerp Zoo . . .

2009-10-28T17:57:00.000-07:00

These are some of the best tapir photos I've ever seen. They were sent recently by Inge, taken at the zoo in Antwerp, Belgium. They're so striking, so nicely photographed, I'll just let them speak for themselves! (Thank you, Inge!!!) If you use them other than for your own enjoyment or as a school project, please, please credit the photographer. If you need more information, contact me at sheryl@tapirback.com.

Ten special mountain tapirs

2009-09-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

Special Note

This piece was made in Colombia for the Tapir Preservation Fund by researcher/artist Sergio Sandoval. We have only 10 available as I write this on September 25, 2009. WE PROBABLY WILL NOT BE ABLE TO GET ANY MORE due to new laws about testing of paint and plastics on any item that could be construed as a child's toy. Sergio would be happy to make more tapirs for us, but we don't know how Customs will view this item if we were to import them. We could call them a collector's item or figurine, but if the Customs Department believes they could be considered a toy suitable for a child 12 or under (and they are made of a durable plastic material), each shipment would be required to enter the country with a certificate of testing that would cost about $1800.00. The actual materials are safe, and the paint is a non-toxic paint made in the U.S. We imported these tapirs before testing was required. Unfortunately, we don't think we will be able to do it again. We do expect to continue to import wood carvings and other art from tapir range countries including Colombia - items that are clearly not for use by children.

Your purchase helps us support tapir conservation in the field.

Our Mountain Tapir Replica/Figurine

This realistic-looking mountain tapir is made of strong resin (you would almost think it was ceramic) and it stands firmly on its 14-toed feet. It is black in color with white highlights along the ears and around the mouth. "Mamadanta" (mother tapir) is 4 1/4 inches long and 2 3/8 inches tall. She shows distinctive and accurate detail of the fur and toes, as she was made by Tapir Specialist Sergio Sandoval of Colombia. Our mountain tapir figurine has an affectionate expression and makes an excellent gift or toy for children or adults and could work well for school show-and-tell or as a school science project. It may also become a valued item in anyone's tapir or animal collection. Check out our other tapir toys and gifts.

About Mountain Tapirs

The mountain tapir (Tapirus pinchaque) is the rarest of all the tapir species with only about 2,500 left in the world. It is also the smallest in size and the only one that lives outside of tropical rainforests. It ranges high in the Andes of South America, exclusively in Colombia, Ecaudor and Northern Peru, where it spends long solitary hours, sleeping or nibbling fruits and leaves. The adult mountain tapir, called "danta" in Colombia, weighs about 300-500 pounds, has a woolly coat and white along its ear tips and around its mouth. Like other tapirs, it has a flexible nose or proboscis. It has four toes on the front feet and three toes on the back feet. The mountain tapir has been driven nearly into extinction by habitat loss and wanton hunting. Successful breeding programs exist at the Los Angeles Zoo and Colorado Springs' Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.

Origami: A folded paper tapir

2009-09-12T09:47:00.001-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/12043525@N04/3892136850/

What harm can be done by one road through "Eden"?

2009-09-10T12:57:00.001-07:00

What harm is one little road? Read on . . .

http://www.physorg.com/news171814103.html

Wonderful photo of Baird's tapir in water

2009-09-09T10:53:00.001-07:00

Hi All,

Check out Nikon Sniper's blog post of a colorful photo he took of a Baird's tapir in the water at the Milwaukee County Zoo. It's quite an unusual picture, I think. Read the first two comments for more info.

http://nikonsniper.blogspot.com/2009/09/sitting-in-cold-drizzle-all-day.html

Beatiful baby tapir photo at the Rome Zoo

2009-08-27T12:31:00.000-07:00

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthpicturegalleries/5989838/Animal-pictures-of-the-week-7-August-2009.html?image=20

Thanks to Elaine Beckham for finding this one for us!

Mountain tapir photos, L.A. Zoo

2009-08-15T15:17:00.000-07:00

These great photos of mountain tapirs at the Los Angeles Zoo showed up on a blog recently. Take a look! Nice work, Heather!

This baby tapir is way too cute!

2009-07-23T16:32:00.000-07:00

http://www.zooborns.com/zooborns/2009/06/tiny-tapir-born-in-berlin.html

Check out this link on ZooBorns, and click on the video. Get ready for the first few seconds of the video showing the baby tapir CHEWING. I can't describe it, but you'll see for yourself. A visitor in our store today is a big tapir fan and told me about this link. Thanks, Kit!

Have fun, everyone :)

Nice tapir photo

2009-07-10T11:36:00.001-07:00

I'm not going to use someone's photo without permission, so you'll have to link over to Flickr to see this Asian tapir at the Henry Vilas Zoo in Madison, Wisconsin. The photo is by "Swhise."

Excellent tapir airticle in the NY Times

2009-06-01T19:58:00.000-07:00

Read about the tapir conservation work of Carl Traeholt in the New York Times article, "New Research on Malaysia’s Odd, Elusive Tapir." It reports on current work in the field of tapir conservation in Southeast Asia and gives up-to-date population estimates for the species. This photo of a tapir caught by the camera trap is from the Times article. My thanks to Jordan Shenhar for bringing the piece to my attention.

Not only is this an excellent article, but it's good news for the tapirs to be featured in such a prominent publication!

Sheryl

Corinna Sara Bechko - multi-talented tapir advocate

2009-05-31T12:40:00.000-07:00

For quite a few years now, Corinna Sara Bechko has been making jewelry for our online gift shop. She creates tapirs and other animals and has the most amazingly artistic assortment of beads that she pairs with the animals. Earrings and pendants come with beads - pins do not. If you ask for a blue bead, you'll get a blue piece of art, whether it's the simply elegant blue bead above, or something with an elaborate design. In any case, they always set off the jewelry to a T. No two pieces are ever alike!

I was excited to find that Corinna was interviewed on the Shrimp Salad Circus blog the other day. Please go on over and take a look! Corinna and her Etsy store (The Frog Bag) are the subject of the post. She has been donating a portion of her sales to the tapirs. She's also conducting a give-away on her blog. Check it out and win one of her most amazing hand-made zoology-inspired cat toys.

Chiloquin Oregon's Hub City Chrome Mystery Tapir

2009-04-29T15:48:00.000-07:00

NOTE: I now believe this animal to be Indricotherium, although with a shorter neck. We've had fun with it. Read on. . . .

A number of years ago, a tapir fan (I think it was hyrax; if it was someone else, please remind me!) told me about this phenomenon - a huge tapir sculpture along a highway in "nowhere" Oregon that didn't quite look like a tapir. After I moved to Oregon, I thought I'd be on the lookout for it, and guess what? We drove past it purely by accident on May 6, 2005, on the way to Crater Lake. I just re-found the photos. It has some tapir characteristics, and some clearly not. But I can't think what else it was intended to be. Certainly they'd know what a cow looked like, or a horse, and this is no rhino.

I can't imagine anyone making a tapir without a long snout, and there was no broken snout, because the nostrils are placed high on the muzzle.

Hub City Chrome is located in Chiloquin, Oregon. Check out the Google map to see one of the strangest locations for a tapir-anything. Of course, we stopped and went inside to find out what they could tell us. They were not pleased to see us. "We think it was made in the '60s," they said, "but we'll probably tear it down. All it gets us is people askin' questions and blockin' up our drive-through, 'specially in summer. They don't buy anything, they just wanna talk." Well, fair enough, I guess, I know what it's like to try to run a small business when people take up your time and don't buy, but maybe they should leave the "thing" intact and put up a sign. It's an oddball attraction, for sure. Maybe they should start selling replicas. I hate to think that it could be gone by now, but the weather and time were not doing it any favors.

If it's an Asian tapir, it would have the white on the top, not on the belly.

And it has a cow's tail, but it's definitely not a cow.

The feet look more like they belong to a rhinoceros, but the legs are clearly tapir. This is all I know. The Hub City tapir remains a mystery. But if you're driving south from Bend to Klamath Falls, or north from Klamath, do check it out and let me know if it still exists, OK?

Tapir birthday cake in Australia

2009-04-29T11:34:00.001-07:00

Sent: Tuesday, April 28, 2009 10:09 PM

Subject: My tapir cake

Well there weren't many tapir cakes on the web for inspiration but I found yours. Here's what I came up with for a recent combined 4th & 66th Birthday occasion. The tapir is my Dad's favourite animal. He's the 'Grandpa' featured here, and the other birthday boy is on the right. Wanted to share this with some other tapir appreciators!

Thanks

Cath

Cath,

I love the photo of your family. I'm sure that many tapir fans will enjoy this! Thanks so much for sending them. Happy birthday to both of the "birday boys," and I have to say, your dad has a truly refined sense of what makes the best "favorite animal"! (Oh, look. The cutting board that the cake is on has stripes! Cool :) ~ Sheryl)

Tapirs at Khao Kheow Open Zoo, Thailand

2009-04-28T20:43:00.000-07:00

These three photos have just arrived from Valeri Volodin of Russia. If you think you're looking at real tapirs in the top photo, you may be surprised. These tapirs are sculptures! Aren't they delightful? Click on the photo to get a closer view! The pictures were taken by Valeri at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo, about 60 miles south of Bangkok.

The photos above and below are of real tapirs at Khao Kheow. Valeri says, "It was very hot, so the tapir was not very active. By the way, they have a baby tapir there, but I didn't see him."

Valeri submitted the name for our popular stuffed tapir, Yanisa. Yanisa the Stuffed Tapir was named after Valeri's daughter, who is half Russian and half Thai. The name means "Wisdom" in the Thai language. Some of us believe that tapirs are the wisest of all animals, so the name is perfect!

Tapirs at Chiangmai Zoo, Northern Thailand

2009-04-28T19:30:00.000-07:00

As in the post above, these tapir photos were sent by Valeri Volodin of Russia. Those in the post above were taken by Valeri, and the two shown on this page were taken by his wife, Chanida.

As always, thanks for sending them. I know the blog readers will enjoy seeing these tapirs and the zoos where they live.

Baby tapir born just in time for World Tapir Day!

2009-04-27T15:18:00.000-07:00

Check out the large version of this beautiful baby tapir photo here:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article6178550.ece

(NOTE: A stock photo (above) has been used in this article. It's still adorable, of course, but it's not Tara and Toby's baby. Thanks, Elisabeth for pointing that out and sending the URL. You can see the baby here. I think the photo may have been taken when the baby was only a few hours old or less. On the video we saw someone crouching the stall taking pictures. Be prepared. This baby is CUTE!)

http://www.noahsarkzoofarm.co.uk/images/visiting/visiting/baby_tapir.jpg

Many in the UK and elsewhere have been watching Tara and Toby since last December. Nobody guessed the delivery date would be so late in the year, because it's hard to know that unless you know the date of conception, and clearly no one did. Gestation is 13 months, and it was quite a waiting game. You can read comments as people waited and fell in love with Toby and Tara:

http://www.checkanimalslive.com/camera/Noahs-Ark-Tapir-Enclosure.html

By following this link, you can also see mom and baby as they interrelate and as the new baby gets used to his new surroundings and begins to grow. He'll gain roughly 1 pound per day for many months. Follow the posts below the zoo's description of the tapir, and you can also copy the link to the YouTube video of the birth. I hadn't expected anything like Tara's reaction to the contractions. Personally, the only tapir birth I've witnessed was online, and the video clip started when the baby was about to drop. I'm kind of glad I didn't see the actual birth in real time and only checked the cam about two minutes after junior was born, because I would have thought I was watching Tara having pre-death convulsions! But I've now heard from a reliable source (a tapir vet, no less) that this sort of reaction is quite usual in ungulates.

April 27, 2009: Cartoon Tapirs by Mary Beaird for World Tapir Day 2009

2009-04-27T13:11:00.000-07:00

Here's another fun bit of tapir art uploaded to the "Tapirs" Google Group by artist Mary Beaird to help celebrate World Tapir Day. Click the pic for a larger image!

Please remember to join us on the World Tapir Day Facebook Page, and learn how you can contribute to saving a piece of tapir habitat in the rainforest of Ecuador.

Please e-mail your photos and text if you would like to see them on this blog.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.
Join WORLD TAPIR DAY on Facebook.

Tapir t-shirts, just your size

2009-04-24T14:00:00.000-07:00

Tapir-lovers come in all sizes, and so do our t-shirts! We special-ordered this 4x "Living in Harmony on Planet Earth" soft and cuddly t-shirt showing all four species of tapir for someone who had requested it. That's Barbara, by the way, showing of the shirt in our storefront. As you can tell, we love being surrounded by animals! Back to the t-shirt: don't hesitate to ask! If we can get it for you, we will! We stock tapir t-shirts from kids' sizes to adult, and we'll special order for you if we need to!

World Tapir Day Goes Global - big celebration in Kuala Lumpur - check out the signs and masks!

2009-04-24T12:55:00.000-07:00

We borrowed this fantastic image from The Star Online. Follow the link and see how Zoo Negara and KL Hop On Hop Off are promoting tapir conservation in Kuala Lumpur. Malaysia is one of the tapirs' native countries, and various entities within the country have been working to raise awareness of the need for tapir conservation for a number of years. The groundswell is growing, and it is so exciting to see World Tapir Day become part of the repertoire!

New tapir photo on Flickr

2009-04-18T00:47:00.000-07:00

Check out this tapir photo by Joebelle on Flickr.

Patricia Medici and the Houston Zoo offer a guided tour to tapir country in the Pantanal of Brazil

2009-04-16T17:43:00.000-07:00

Patricia Medici scouts potential tapir capture sites

for her radio-collaring project in Brazil's Pantanal.

Join the Houston Zoo and Terra Incognita Ecotours on a very special trip to Brazil's Pantanal August 23 - September 1, 2009.

Enjoy seeing animals and birds of the Pantanal region. The cost of your trip includes a donation to Patricia Medici's tapir conservation program. Read more about this remarkable opportunity on the web site of the Houston Zoo. For those of you who are interested in seeing tapirs, it is very possible to see tapirs in this environment, but a sighting is not guaranteed. As always, the animals tend to be elusive. However, the tapir popoulation in the Pantanal is relatively plentiful, and you may have as much chance to see them here as anywhere. This amazing habitat is rich with life, and your guide is experienced in the behavior of tapirs in the wild.

Click on the link above to read more about the tour on the Houston Zoo's web site. There you can also download a detailed PDF file with pictures of some of the Pantanal's exotic wild animals and descriptions of this special adventure guided by Patricia Medici and the Houston Zoo.

Tapir art on a cell phone

2009-04-12T17:55:00.000-07:00

In 2003, Katalin Pinter of Hungary programmed her phone with artwork of her favorite lowland tapirs, Samson and Mandula, and she sent me a photo of the phone. Thanks, Katalin, wherever you are! I'm sorry it took me so long to put it online!

Splash Damage Accidentally Starts Work on Tapir Wars Sequel

2009-04-05T15:09:00.000-07:00

Originally posted by Anthony Long on "Tapirs" Google Group:

I'm a little late in posting it, but I've got there now:

Tapir Wars: Welcome to the Jungle™ is the semi-sequel to 2008's Odd-Toed Game of the Year Tapir Wars™. Set in Splash Damage's rich and unique Tapirverse™, Tapir Wars: Welcome to the Jungle gently nudges the boundaries of vegetarian warfare with a game that looks and plays exactly the same as its predecessor.

Tapir Wars: Welcome to the Jungle continues the story of an anonymous squad of elite tapirs who've seen it all as they blast, munch and cigar their way through the surprisingly sparse jungles of South East Asia, continuing their hunt for the rogue traitor mole double agent ninja zombie pirate mastermind only known as Nina who is also secretly a penguin.

To read more (and to be very jealous of the figurine), visit:

http://www.splashdamage.com/content/splash-damage-accidentally-starts-work-tapir-wars-sequel-0?s=99e5d8c960024d908edadabdd991b320

Cheers,

Anthony.

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Sixty-three beautiful photos of Mona the baby Baird's tapir

2009-04-03T13:31:00.000-07:00

I've just finished uploading and captioning 63 photos of Mona the Baird's tapir from her first formal photo shoot in December 1970. I think it was the day after she arrived from Panama. She still had the rope around her neck from her trip up on a plane in a large crate. We waited until the photo shoot was over to take it off, because we didn't want her to run into the street! My brother-in-law at that time, Bruce Wilson, came out to Claremont from Los Angeles to take the pictures. He was either still at Art Center School for photography or had recently graduated, so the quality of these photos is excellent. I finally found a scanner that will do a nice job scanning negatives and slides, and I borrowed it. I'm very excited, because it's the first time I've seen many of these pictures in a format larger than a 35 mm contact sheet, and I've never had such nice pictures of Mona to put online until now. This should be the beginning of being able to convert other tapir pictures from my files when I can find the time!

Briefly, the story behind Mona is that Russ Mittermeier (later founder of Conservation International) found her in a market in Panama while he was still in college and had been studying on Barro Colorado Island. The people were selling her for only $50.00. He knew her real value as an endangered species, and because he had met us and Stanley Tapir, he figured we'd give her a good home. He put her on a plane and shipped her up to the US. We only had to pay her airfare and the $50 he'd paid for her. We suspected she was being sold, as is typical, for a pet until she grew big enough to kill for food. Even in 1970, if the captors had known what she was worth to a zoo or animal collector, they would have been able to get about $3,000 to $3,500 for her. We were so lucky, and so was she! We raised her to the age of about 8 months, and then gave her to the San Diego Zoo where she lived to the age of 24. She had a number of babies, which were traded as far away as Japan and China. One went to the Zoo in Santa Barbara, California, and I was able to see her.

Mona was only about the fifth Baird's tapir in captivity in North America at the time we got her. There had been one or two in much earlier years, but they were gone. In the early 1970s, the Los Angeles Zoo had a pair, and the San Diego Zoo had a pair. The pair at Los Angeles were potential breeders, but the pair at San Diego were not showing any signs of breeding, although they were old enough. The staff thought that Mona could help produce a viable US-born Baird's tapir, and in fact, shortly after she arrived at the zoo the original female got pregnant. I won't try to figure out tapir psychology on that level, but her presence may have had something to do with it. When she was older, she became a second mate for Titus.

Growing up, Mona was a sweetie. Stanley tapir was a biter from Day 1, and I had to consider him potentially dangerous, although I loved him a lot. Mona never bit, and she liked sucking on fingers. You can see her doing that in one of these photos. At the age of eight months, when we drover her down to San Diego in our van, we didn't cage her, and the only way I could keep her settled down for the hour's drive was to let her suck on my fingers again. It was a little daunting with all those teeth, but she was very good about it. I was so sad to let her go, but it was the right thing to do. Anyway, you can imagine how I felt seeing these photos scanned so beautifully. I have more photos of her and of Stanley that I'll get around to scanning someday. They're of lesser quality unless a long-lost proof sheet turns up, so getting a chance to work from these negatives was quite a treat. Enjoy the photo album, and thanks for visiting!

Mountain tapirs in Colombia

2009-04-02T11:47:00.000-07:00

There's an interesting new post on Sergio's blog with a nice photo of a mountain tapir. He makes some good comments about mountain tapir conservation in Colombia. You can see the post and photo here: http://sergiosandovalarenas.blogspot.com/2009/04/no-more-stripes.html

Tara Tapir - Live Tapir Cam

2009-03-28T17:27:00.000-07:00

http://www.checkanimalslive.com/camera/Noahs-Ark-Tapir-Enclosure.html

Tara tapir must be getting very close to giving birth now. She was breathing heavily last night, but today there's no new calf. She certainly looks ready. You might like to check in with the tapir cam link above and read some of the viewer comments beneath the text, too. Toby is also a favorite and it's fun to watch the two of them. They get along famously.

I printed a new URL the other day, but they've switched back to the one above. I also like looking at their other cams (not all animals, thought mosltly in the UK time zone):

http://www.checkitlive.com/

There are several pages of cams to choose from.

Surprise photos of Stanley K. Tapir

2009-03-24T17:42:00.000-07:00

It was a very special treat today when I opened my e-mail and found four photos of Stanley K. Tapir that I hadn't known existed. They were taken approximately March or April 1969. Barry wrote: "We used to have Sunday morning pancakes at IHOP and bring the left-overs up to your place for Stanley." Well, this is an episode I had completely forgotten. Here is Candace in four photos with Stanley. They brought back memories, for sure. Stanley was about four or five months old here. I'd forgotten that he had such a nice cushy bed inside the house at that age. It wasn't long before the big, strong tapir was completely relegated to a pen outdoors at the back of the house, and I know he didn't like that! In the picture above, the ever-curious tapir was checking out Candy's hair.

Here's Candy enticing Stanley to come outside using the leftover pancakes as bait. Of course, we gave the tapir regular feedings of a diet suggested by San Diego Zoo including alfalfa hay, horse meal (Trophy brand), fresh fruit and vegetables, but he would eat almost anything and had a particular fondness for most things that people eat. It's almost impossible to push a tapir anywhere (see the end of the post), but he could be led with bananas, pancakes, or anything that smelled really good.

Happy tapir. I'd forgotten that he had this much white under this throat. It seems to have faded with age, because I don't see it in his later photos - this one, for instance.

He's looking for the crumbs :) Big, big thanks to Barry and Candace! These pictures really made my day!

In the first paragraph, I mentioned that you can't push a tapir. You can try, but every time I've done it, even when the tapir was half the size that Stanley is here, he would lean back into me. I thought he was just being stubborn, but years later I heard something on a video shown on PBS by "the real horse whisperer," Monty Roberts. (This guy was amazing, by the way, find the video if you can.) He understood horse behavior so well that it was as if the horse heard his thoughts and did what he wanted. He simply knew how the horse would respond to a certain stimulus and behaved in such a way that would most times give him the reaction he wanted. Tapirs are related to horses, and I expect they behave the same way to the stimulus of being pushed or poked. They lean into it. Monty explained that when a horse is attacked by a large cat such as a mountain lion, it pushes toward the attacking claws. If it pulled away, the skin and muscle would rip and damage the horse terribly. By leaning back into the pressure, the horse may have a chance to disengage the claws before it runs or frightens away the cat. I've never seen this, I'm only remembering what I heard in the video. It would be interesting if anyone had further information.

Tapir art and video

2009-03-24T16:44:00.000-07:00

I received an e-mail the other day from Elisabeth Nönnig of Hamburg with some nice comments about our tapir blog. She included a link to a drawing (shown above) that she had made recently and gave us permission to use it. Her description on the web page is: "some lowland tapirs in what i probably think a jungle in south america looks like (bamboo?!, trees, grass, vines, mud for tapirs to sleep in). i'm not used to drawing backgrounds, or plants, anyway. ballpoint and pencil. took 2 lectures to finish.)"

About the video, Elisabeth said, "This video is probably the best that i have to offer so far: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juUVg0-w4f0 ; it's from Duisburg zoo in Germany, but almost a year old and rather short. I live in Hamburg, Germany, and the local zoo has at least 3 lowland tapirs. They are very cute and they even come to the fence so you can pet them. I must remember to bring my camera next time I visit :) I've also been to Artis zoo in Amsterdam a few weeks ago, but the tapirs were inside and there was only a camera showing the mother and the new baby tapir."

Thanks very much for your contributions, Elisabeth!

For the latest tapir cam news . . .

2009-03-22T14:49:00.000-07:00

Please check out the first post and the reply on this page of our Google Tapir's group:

http://groups.google.com/group/tapirs/browse_thread/thread/b250f62ad84829b4

Briefly, there's a new URL for Toby and Tara at Noah's Ark Zoo and there's a brand new tapir cam installed in Manchester, all in the UK. If you get darkness on the Manchester camera, it could be night time. Toby and Tara's camera has lighting so you can see what's going on at any hour, as there will be a new baby tapir soon!

Jordan visits the Houston Zoo: 35 New photos in our online Lowland Tapir Photo Album

2009-03-20T15:05:00.000-07:00

When Jordan Shenhar and his family visited the Houston Zoo in February, they were given the royal tapir treatment. There's Jordan on the left wearing a lowland tapir sweatshirt he bought from our online tapir gift shop. Jordan has been a fan of tapirs for a number of years and a contributor to tapir conservation. I had told him to let me know if he was planning to visit the Houston Zoo, and he remembered. One day I got an e-mail saying that Jordan and his family were indeed planning a visit, so I contacted Kelly Russo (on the right) who is a very active member of the IUCN/SSC Tapir Specialist Group. As the Houston Zoo is also a huge supporter of tapirs and tapir conservation, it all worked out. Jordan got to pet a tapir, we ended up with some amazing photos to share with you, and it looks like the tapirs had a pretty good time, too. The tapir in the photos is "Casaba," an older female lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris) and long-time resident of the Houston Zoo.

See all 35 photos in TPF's online Lowland Tapir album! Big thanks to Jordan and his family for these photos and to the Houston Zoo for their permission to use them. Jordan and I will continue to work on the captions, but I wanted to get the pictures online ASAP. The link above goes to the first photo in the series.

Check out two new tapir blogs!

2009-03-04T11:12:00.001-08:00

Sergio Sandoval Arenas

with a young mountain tapir,

Colombia

Two tapir researchers and conservationists who we've worked with over the past few years now have their own blogs! In the case of Sergio Sandoval, above, the blog is a personal presentation, where we'll be able to learn more about him, his work, and his country, Colombia. We are working on a new donation page for Sergio's tapir work. He has contributed many of the items in our online gift shop through his own artistic talents and by purchasing products for us that are made in Colombia.

Georgina O'Farrill,

Baird's Tapir Project,

Mexico

Georgina's blog is about her tapir project in Mexico. Both Sergio and Georgina have been recipients of our Club Tapir donations (your contributions!), and we continue to support both projects when your donations allow us to do so. We'd like you to learn more about these projects and the people who dedicate their time to them. We look forward to watching both of these blogs grow! You can donate to Georgina's work via our online donation page (scroll down to the Baird's tapir projects). This page is new and growing!

------------------

If you have a tapir project with a web site or blog, please contact me so I can link to it as we continue to develop the connectivity that helps fund projects and helps all of us learn more about the projects and the scientists who run them. If you have a project that you think we should include on our donation page, please contact me.

The photos on this page are copyrighted by
Sergio Sandoval Arenas and Georgina O'Farrill.

All the best,

Sheryl

Interesting lowland tapirs at Twycross Zoo

2009-03-03T11:06:00.001-08:00

Hi All,

One of our "TAPIRS Google Group" members, skoop102, posted some really interesting photos over there of lowland tapirs at the Twycross Zoo, UK. Let me know if you have any input on the questions these photos bring up, OK? Here's the discussion about those tapirs.

Sheryl

March 2, 2009: Twycross Zoo, UK

2009-03-02T13:19:00.000-08:00

Photos contributed by Sarah Cooper (skoop102)
First posted on the Tapirs Google group
December 11, 2008

Sarah wrote:

Hi All.

I have added a few photographs from my recent visit to Twycross Zoo, UK.
A new pair of Brazilian tapirs are now on show.

This pair demonstrate the range of colours which 'they come in.

The female on the left has a very black face, and the male has a very pale face. She also had a very wrinkly snout and ears. He has hair sprouting from the base of his ears.

It is also to be noted that this pair both have some spots remaining on the legs (though not very visible on this photo), despite the fact that they are a few years old.

I believe they are called Muffin and Pele.

[Note: There was more to this discussion, which I'll transfer as I continue to work on dismantling the Google Group Tapirs discussion site. ~Sheryl]

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A lowland tapir at Yasuni National Park Biological Station, Ecuador

2009-02-13T09:05:00.000-08:00

I never know what will show up in my in-box. Yesterday was a treat. Xavier Cornejo, an Ecuadorian botanist currently working in the New York Botanical Garden, sent us some photos of Carla, a lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris) who regularly visits the Yasuni Biological Station in Yasuni National Park, Ecuador. Xavier was visiting the station in Yasuni Biological Station to study some families of plants for the Flora of Ecuador project, when he met his first tapir, Carla. Yasuni NP is in the rainforest on the border with Peru. Note the long hair of Carla's mane and the strip of long hair on her back. I've seen this one or two times, and I'm still trying to remember where. It may have been on a Baird's tapir. I remember thinking, "So this is what the books were referring to." It's extremely uncommon in the tapirs I've seen. Does anyone have observations on this?

Here's Xavier meeting Carla. Continue down the blog to learn more about the friendly Carla and her relationship with the research station. Carla is about 2 years and 2 months old here, and April 7, 2009, will be the two-year anniversary of her adoption by the station. Carla is free to come and go as she pleases. She enjoys visiting, and you'll hear about that in a minute.

Xavier is just over 5' 8" tall (1.78 meters), to give some idea in relation to the tapir.

Xavier and Carla are waiting outside the dining hall of Yasuni Biological Station. Did anyone say "food"?

This photo of Carla as a baby was sent by Pablo Alvia, who currently works in the Yasuni National Park. The age estimate give is approximately four months, but I wonder because she still has so many stripes. Does anyone remember if there is a photo study of the way juvenile lowland tapirs look at various ages? Carla made her first appearance at the biological station on April 7, 2007. The photo is labelled "Dantito," a little tapir.

Xavier said that Carla (as an adult) is a very quiet and nice animal. It seems that temperament varies extremely from one tapir to the next. I raised two (one lowland male and one Baird's female). I got each one as a striped baby, and the male was a biter from the youngest age, while the female never tried to bite even up to the age of 8 months, at which time she went to live at the San Diego Zoo. I should also mention that tapirs are large animal with strong jaws, and they are also curious. Sometimes they will simply nibble on things to test them, and you don't want that thing to be your fingers! I mentioned tapir temperament to Xavier, and asked a lot of questions. He replied with the following e-mail:

"I'm a biologist specialized in botany. I know something about some wild species of animals from Ecuador, but unfortunately I know nothing about Tapirs. Somebody told me that that Tapir from Yasuni National Park (NE Ecuador, Orellana Prov.) is a female, and is fed with bananas. In one of the photos (with me) she is resting outside the restaurant of the Biological Station, looking throught the window, waiting for somebody to feed her. I was stroking her neck (she likes it), but a couple of minutes after that photo (with me sitting on the ground), she was smelling me and relatively softly bit my leg, that scared me a bit because she is a huge animal. I noticed that she didn't like when I stroked her nose and close to her eyes. That tapir is the pet of the Biological Station of Yasuni National Park, she lives there and freely walks in the night. The first meeting with her was some minutes before while I was pressing the plants I collected during the day. My plants where organized in piles, she suddenly appeared in the darkness smelling them, looking for something to eat."

Oops! In the US we have a joke when you don't do your schoolwork; you tell the teacher that that your dog ate the homework. How would you explain that a tapir ate your botany project?

In addition to the pictures of Carla, Xavier forwarded two photos taken by Pablo Alvia of a lowland tapir skull housed at the Yasuni Biological Station:

Above: Top view of lowland tapir skull by Pablo Alvia, Ecuador.

Side view of lowland tapir skull by Pablo Alvia, Ecuador.

The side view of the skull shows blackened molars. I'd like to ask the experts in the field to what they would attribute this condition of the teeth in the Yasuni National Park region of Ecuador.

Our thanks to Xavier and Pablo for their contributions to this blog. I have also added the photos to our lowland tapir photo album and lowland tapir album of natural history images. Copies of these photos are in the database of the Museum at the Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Guayaquil, Ecuador.

Feb 9, 2009: Sleeping Tapir

2009-02-09T16:10:00.000-08:00

Photo by Lauren Faceski

February 9, 2009

Please e-mail your photos and text if you would like to see them on this blog.

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Mountain tapir on fabric - 2001

2009-02-09T15:53:00.000-08:00

I found this while going through some old photos. It's a mountain tapir commercially printed on fabric. In the corner you can see the back of a pangolin, too. That's pretty amazing! It's too bad they spelled Colombia wrong, but how often do you see a tapir on fabric? The theme was endangered species. Unfortunately you can't get the fabric any more. I took the photo of it in 2001. Here's a link to more mountain tapir art and craft.

See a Malayan tapir giving birth on video - Artis Zoo, Amsterdam

2009-02-04T13:05:00.000-08:00

I received this note yesterday:

Hi Sheryl,

We have just found your tapirgallery.blogspot.com. Nice site for tapir-fans like us! But did you know there was a tapir born in ARTIS Amsterdam in December 2008? And they made films (birth + first steps), here you can find the first: http://www.artis.nl/main.php?pagina=paginas/a/tapirjong_film.html (to
see the film of the birth follow the link:

http://www.artis.nl/main.php?pagina=paginas/a/lief_leed/liefenleed.php?liefenleed_id=170

Regards + have fun! Georg + Ingrid

Note: I could not make a direct link to the birth video. You will have to click on the link that says: >>Bekijk het geboortefilmpje en link door naar de 1e filmbeelden (as Georg and Ingrid noted in their original e-mail).

More tapirs in the snow

2009-02-03T12:39:00.000-08:00

I still don't know if you have to be a member of Facebook to see the photos (I expect so, maybe someone will tell me), but Laura Robbins has another fun album posted with some super nice pix of tapirs in the snow (snow album part 2) and the incredible Dudley Castle also in the snow. There are also meerkats, reindeer, a red panda and more. Have fun :) If you're not a Facebook member, it might be worth it to join.

Tapir salad and slide shows

2009-02-02T17:33:00.000-08:00

Hi All,

I've added another tapir slide show to the site - this time it's on the Malayan tapir pictures page:

http://www.tapirback.com/tapirgal/asian/pix-liv/

The photo above does not move, so don't worry about it, it's just a teaser for the slide show. This pic was sent by Heidi Frohring, who many of you will remember was a totally one-of-a-kind tapir keeper at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle. She named this photo "Tapir Salad." There are many of her photos in the slide show/album. As of today, I don't have them all labelled. I've spent the day working on some stuff for the gift shop. I'm starting to use slide shows there, too. It's loads of fun. We're going to sort the animals regionally in addition to the other ways we have them sorted, and I've started with the Galapagos page (which has relatively few animals on it). It's not done yet as of this moment, but you can look at.

~ Sheryl

Tapirs in the snow at Dudley Zoo, UK

2009-01-28T13:18:00.000-08:00

These four photos of lowland tapirs in the snow (January 4, 2009) were sent to me by tapir keeper Laura Robbins of Dudley Zoo, West Midlands, UK. She said the two younger tapirs shown here didn't mind the snow at all and seemed curious about it, although the older female preferred to stay indoors. I guess she didn't enjoy the cold! The tapirs' names are Meena and Izzy.

When I looked up Dudley Zoo online, I found that it is located in a picturesque 11th Century Norman castle.

There's a lot going on at the zoo in terms of education and conservation. The zoo staff also took part in a somewhat startling fundraiser this year - the keepers came to work wearing just about what the animals wear. That is . . . well, maybe you should check out this BBC video story on the event! It's done all in fun, so put on a smile and tune in! A tapir is featured as well as the keepers!

Tapirs are make an appearance on Dudley Zoo's "News" page, along with other nice animals and even some humans.

Thanks for these wonderful photos, Laura. I'll be seeing you on Facebook! (This should link to a charming picture of Laura with one of her tapirs, although you may have to join Facebook to see it, I'm not sure.)

One more thing - these pictures of tapirs in the snow can also be seen in our Picasa Web album. Have fun!

~ Sheryl

Tapir slide shows . . . the possibilities!

2009-01-27T12:55:00.001-08:00

Tapirs: Lowland, Art and Craft

Click on image to go to web album

Oh, cool! I just found that I can put a slideshow link of any of my Picasa Web Albums into a blog post or Web page. Let's see how it works! Here's one of the many tapir albums. Click on it at any time and you will go to the web album.

Ernie the tapir on a Christmas Card

2009-01-21T19:27:00.000-08:00

One of the special Christmas Cards I got this year was from Laura Robbins, tapir keeper at Dudley Zoo in England. The baby lowland tapir is Ernie, born in 2005, and was Laura's first baby tapir. I wanted to post the card for all to enjoy :) Sorry, I photographed it on a cluttered background, then I didn't want to crop off the edges. The newspaper clipping says something about gorillas.

Thanks, Laura! Thanks, Ernie! This was fun! And the ink is silver, too. I love it!!!

Malayan tapir at Artis Zoo, Amsterdam - March 1971

2009-01-19T12:50:00.000-08:00

Malayan tapir photo

by L.C. Rookmaaker, March 1971

I scanned this from a faded old photo, so the colors have changed over the years - and that's actually the point. My interest in tapirs started in 1968, and during the early years, and then again starting in 1996, I've accumulated tapir archives and collectibles - images, printed materials, notes. Besides those I've collected myself and with Bob in the early years, people from around the world have been kind enough to send info and pictures for these many years. It takes a long time to put it all on a web site, and less time to put it in online albums and on blogs. But it does take time. One of my goals this year is to put these materials online where people can find and use them. You never know what bit of historical data will interest someone or help in their research.

Many of the photos, like this one, are faded. Other materials are in perfect condition. I wish I could say I still had every bit of tapir material I'd received since 1968, but a few things have been lost or destroyed. Years ago there was, unfortunately, a fire where some of our tapir things were kept from the early days. Some were destroyed, although many escaped the flames. These events are a good reminder that it's time to make use of digital storage and distribution. So . . . here we go. In moving the files to a more accommodating location for working on them, I found a number of pictures of Stanley K. Tapir that I thought were lost. This is going to be fun for me, and hopefully helpful and fun for tapir fans and researchers. I'll post on the blog and the Tapirs Google Group when I've uploaded a large chunk or something I think will be of special interest. L.C. Rookmaaker, who sent the tapir photo above, also sent copious notes throughout our early years of tapir study. These mainly related to tapirs in various collections. Especially interesting were some of the early records. I've been out of touch with L.C. for many years, but I noticed his work on rhino documentation has been posted online as recently as 2007. L.C., wherever you are, I have fond memories of our correspondence and your valuable help in the 1960s and 1970s!

The photo above can also be seen in my Web Album of Malayan Tapir photos. Each species also has an album devoted to art and craft and to natural history. The captions are not typed yet. That's another part of the project! Let's see how much I can get done this year.

~ Sheryl

If you're thinking of giving a gift, here's a thought (be sure and see the tapir photo, too!)

2009-01-02T13:17:00.000-08:00

YOUR SHARE MAKES A DIFFERENCE

Hi all,

I received e-mail from Wolfgang, who directed me to his blog. The thoughts are definitely worth passing along. He has also posted a wonderful photo of a very relaxed Baird's tapir in the wild at Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica. I'm sure you'll want to follow the link!

http://www.yoursharemakesadifference.com/greentips/ysmad_php_xmas_gifts.html

It's valid any time, not just for Christmas. And the rest of the blog has interesting ideas for these times when global conservation is so important!

Thanks!

Sheryl

Baird's tapir skull photo courtesy of Nancy R. Koerner

2008-12-29T13:34:00.000-08:00

Photo of Baird's tapir skull courtesy of

and copyright by Nancy R. Koerner

This photo of an adolescent Baird's tapir skull was loaned to us by Nancy R. Koerner for use on the Tapir Gallery Web site. Tapir skulls are always interesting. Note that this one may look very different from some Baird's tapir skulls because the bony nasal septum has disappeared, and only the hard bone is left. When looking at photos of the skulls of Baird's tapir, it would be easy to think there were two completely different animals. Here you can compare the skull above with one mounted in the Smithsonian which still has the septum intact. See a larger image of the skull and read about how Nancy acquired it on the skull's page in The Tapir Gallery. It can also be viewed in our Picasa Web Album of Baird's tapir natural history photos.

Nancy is the author if Belize Survivor: Darker Side of Paradise. It is a fascinating book with an important message for our times.

Cotswold Wildlife Park

2008-12-11T15:00:00.000-08:00

Photos contributed by Sarah Cooper (skoop102)

First posted on the Tapirs Google group

December 11, 2008

Sarah wrote:

Hello.

I thought I would share some photos taken on a recent visit to the Cotswold Wildlife Park, at Burford, England (http://www.cotswoldwildlifepark.co.uk/)

Pictured are the 2 Brazilian tapirs who live at the park, Timmy the male, and Squidge the female.

Also included is a picture of me, stroking Timmy. At the park, the tapirs are very friendly and you are able to stroke them, unsupervised, over the fence.

They share their enclosure with a family of capybara.

Squidge and Timmy and had a baby born this year, but he sadly died. Their previous baby, Belita, has now left the park, and I believe she has moved to a collection in Belgium.

From Sarah.

Please e-mail your photos and text if you would like to see them on the blog.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.
Join WORLD TAPIR DAY on Facebook.

Baby tapir coming in England

2008-12-07T11:30:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone,

Now is the time to tune in to the Tapir Cam at Noah's Ark Zoo Farm near Bristol, England. The female tapir, Tara, is expecting a calf literally any day - maybe today or tomorrow! I've given a longer explanation of how and when to watch on the Tapirs Google Group:

http://groups.google.com/group/tapirs/browse_thread/thread/5b495353fe3cebc5

and here is the link to the Tapir Cam:

http://www.checkanimalslive.com/camera/Noahs-Ark-Tapir-Enclosure.html

The photo above is Stanley K. Tapir's baby, Melon, born years ago at the Houston Zoo. I'm using it as an example of how adorable baby tapirs are! By the way, baby tapirs are called "calves" even though the parents are not called bulls and cows.

Sheryl

Mountain tapir skull photos in our web album

2008-12-03T16:40:00.000-08:00

In the 1960s or around 1970, I acquired this mountain tapir skull from Ecuador. You can see additonal photos and angles, and learn where it came from and why it has green and orange paint in it. You can find the photos in our Mountain Tapir Natural History Web Album. As I go through photos and info from my tapir files, I'll be making a lot more tapir material available for public use.

Tapir Web cam . . . you have to see this!

2008-11-30T13:37:00.000-08:00

Check it out. Sarah Tegan posted on the Tapirs Google Group earlier today. I don't know how to bookmark it, but I've got it minimized on my desktop :)

Hello,

I'm not sure if you've seen this tapir webcam, at Noah's Ark Farm zoo in Bristol. Most entertaining!

http://stream11.finetra.co.uk/noahsark

Sarah-Tegan. xx

Baird's tapir tapers (candlesticks)

2008-11-30T09:58:00.000-08:00

I've uploaded several new images of Baird's tapir art and craft and have captioned the album. You can see them by following the link above. I'm in the process of going through the files on my hard drive, so I hope to have more "soon" on an ongoing basis until I finish! Then I'll get to the paper files and photos on slides. . . .

---------------------------

I'm continuing to update the web albums. Here are a couple of the new tapirs since the earlier part of this post. You can find the links to all of the ART AND CRAFT tapir web albums below the images. The albums are not completely labelled, but that will come. I'm not trying to leave out any of the people who sent me things to put online!

Lowland tapirs in balata rubber from Guyana

Baby mountain tapir in balsa wood from Ecuador

Album art and craft links:

Lowland Tapir Art and Craft Album
Mountain Tapir Art and Craft Album
Baird's Tapir Art and Craft Album
Malayan Tapir Art and Craft Album
Mixed and Generic Tapir Art and Craft Album

Silvia Chalukian wins Club Tapir vote for October 2008

2008-11-14T20:00:00.000-08:00

Dear Tapir Fans and Friends,

You can read more about Silvia's project in Argentina and vote for November's Club Tapir project on our Club Tapir page.

Visit the Proyeco Tapir site here. It's in several languages, including English. I love the animated intro!

Sheryl

A photo of April the Tapir in the mud

2008-11-14T19:46:00.000-08:00

This photo of April the tapir at the Belize Zoo was sent to us by Douglas Reynolds to share with tapir fans and help raise awareness about tapirs. You can see more tapir photos on The Tapir Gallery web site and learn about their endangered status and what can be done. Thanks for visiting! Remember, all tapirs are endangered! You've got some nice footprints, there, April! This photo was taken January 8, 2008.

Gray Fossil (Tapir) Site has a new web address

2008-10-29T09:31:00.000-07:00

I've just had word from Martin Kohl, who discovered the first fossil bone at what is now known as the Gray Fossil Site in Tennessee, that his site's URL has changed. Please check out the new location: http://Graysite1.net/. There are pictures of fossil tapir skulls and excellent clear photos of the teeth, renderings of just how that many tapirs could have been caught in one pit, and other interesting scientific material on the site. The picture above is borrowed from the site with thanks. It shows the place that would become such a tremendous educational center on the day of the first fossil discovery. Martin Kohl's web site also gives a history of the dig and how it all got started. Many important discoveries have come from the Gray site including red pandas, turtles, and beautiful fossil plants.

Photo of a tapir at Linton Zoo, UK

2008-10-28T07:31:00.000-07:00

Hi Everyone,

Charmain Felts sent this photo of one of the lowland tapirs at Linton Zoo. She wrote:

Sending you a picture I took at Linton Zoo in Cambridgeshire, UK. This is by far the best enclosure I have seen Tapirs in. I highly recommend a visit if you are in the area . . . the Tapirs are called Shannon and Tanya, and have been at Linton zoo since 1990. The zoo's web site is www.lintonzoo.com.

Kind regards,

Charmain from Bedfordshire

Charming resin mountain tapirs

2008-10-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

Mamadanta and her baby, Tapircito, were made in Colombia by Sergio Sandoval. You can get them both in TPF's gift shop, but mama isn't set up for online ordering yet. Please see this blog post for ordering details. Thanks!

Non-tapir crafts that help us fund tapir conservation

2008-10-09T13:54:00.000-07:00

What's this? A photo with no tapir in it? Find out why. I've written quite a long post about our online gift shops (original and new), their purpose, directions, and a little history on the Google group: Tapirs.