An old episode of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations sparked my interest in Brazil’s Pantanal region. Bourdain searched eastern Brazil in vain for a rare species of fish he wanted to eat. He was told it was still abundant in a remote part of western Brazil, so he purchased a charter flight to take him there and satisfy his culinary curiosity. The pilot flew the small aircraft through storms, and Bourdain and his crew weren’t sure they were going to make it. Then, after arrival, Bourdain suffered the worst back pain he’d ever felt, and his producer fell ill with a tropical fever. Nevertheless, they continued filming and I was impressed with the quantity and quality of wildlife. It reminded me of 18th century descriptions of Kentucky and early 19th century accounts of Oklahoma. On a boardwalk through a jungle Bourdain saw a red monkey that no one could identify. Though there are riverine forests, most of the Pantanal consists of vast treeless plains, variously flooded here and there. The indigenous people who sparsely populate the Pantanal use it as pastureland, and large herds of feral hogs and peccaries intermingle with cattle. Caimans and capybaras abound in the flooded parts, and huge flocks of wading birds crowd the water holes. Incidentally, Bourdain did get to sample the fish.
Map of Brazil’s pantanal.
The Brazilian Panatanal is 1 of the richest wildernesses left on earth. It encompasses 75,000 square miles and includes at least 12 different types of ecosystems. 463 species of birds, 209 species of fish, and 236 species of mammals live in the region. It has the healthiest population of jaguars in the world. Peccaries and wild pigs are the most common ungulates.
Feral hog and vultures feeding upon a dead cow in Brazil’s pantanal region.
Collared peccary.
White lipped peccaries.
Peccaries and pigs are superficially similar in appearance, but they are separated by over 25 million years of evolution. There are 2 species of peccaries native to the Pantanal–the aggressive white-lipped (Tayassu pecari) and the collared (Pecari tajacu). Feral hogs (Sus scrofa) are not native to the Pantanal and were introduced hundreds of years ago. Scientists who study the interrelationships between peccaries and pigs expect the latter to be detrimental to the former, but their studies find this is not true. A recent study examined the consumption of 37 plant foods among the 3 species, and they found minimal dietary overlap. Feral hogs favored grugru palm nuts (Acrocomia aculeata), collared peccaries preferred bay cedar (Guazuma sp.), and white-lipped peccaries liked the fruit of a plant in the coffee family (Alibertia sessilis). All 3 species did feed upon the fruit of Astralea phaleratata, a type of palm. Palm nuts taste coconut-like. There was more overlap in diet between white-lipped peccaries and wild hogs than between collared peccaries and wild hogs. Collared peccaries foraged at times when they could avoid pigs and white-lipped peccaries.
Chart showing diet overlap between the 3 species. From the below referenced paper.
Palm nuts from the grugru palm are the favorite food of feral hogs in the Pantanal.
Alibertia sessilis fruit ( relative of coffee) is the favorite food of the white-lipped peccary in this region.
The study determined bay cedar was the favorite food of the collared peccary.
During the Pleistocene new species of mammals periodically crossed the Bering Land Bridge and invaded the Americas, and vice versa. Like pigs and peccaries, many of the co-existed. Deer, bear, and big cats came from Eurasia. Horses and camels went from the Americas to Eurasia. Co-existence was not always permanent. Felids from Eurasia outcompeted many species of canids, a group of carnivores originating in North America. Deer from Eurasia outlasted 3-toed American horses. The composition of mammals on both continents changed over time, and co-existence between species can be temporary or long lasting.
Reference:
Galetti, M. ; et al
“Diet Overlap and Foraging Activity Between Feral Pigs and Native Peccaries in the Pantanal”
PLOS ONE 2015
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