Tapir on a trail
Photo by John Burke
John Burke of Blackpool, England, has generously lent us this photo of a Brazilian tapir in the Chester Zoo, Chester, England. Additional photos of the tapirs in the Chester Zoo are linked from our Brazilian tapir section, here.
In the wild, tapirs are known for their trail-making abilities. The paths they make through dense jungle undergrowth are so well laid out that tapirs have been called "engineers of the jungle." It is interesting that when humans have wanted to create roads, they have often followed the paths made by tapirs. Of course, they would have to enlarge these trails both in width and height. Unfortunately, when humans take over, the tapirs are forced to move on, and there will not always be new places for them to move to.
John Burke has some fascinating pages on the Web himself, showing other animal photos he's taken, along with such interesting subjects (and photos) as England's stone circles, juke boxes, pinballs and English curiosities. Highly recommended! Also see John's capybara photo in the Tapir Gallery. (It's the second photo on the page.)