THE ANIMAL FILES

Malayan tapir

Tapirus indicus

A striped calf grows into a black-and-white adult.

A spotted, striped Malayan tapir calf grows into an adult with a contrasting pale saddle. Its flexible snout helps gather plant food.[2][3]

Follow the evidence ↓
Malayan tapir
Image: Rufus46 · Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
A flexible food gatherer
Nose and upper lip form the proboscis.[2]
The adult saddle
A pale mid-body area contrasts with dark regions.[2]
Growing out of stripes
Calves start with white spots and stripes.[3]

A flexible food gatherer

The short proboscis combines the nose and upper lip. Tapirs use it to grasp vegetation and bring food towards the mouth.[2]

The adult saddle

Adults have contrasting dark and pale areas that break up the outline against forest shade. Calves instead have spots and stripes.[2]

Growing out of stripes

Newborn calves have pale spots and stripes that gradually change towards adult colour. One zoo calf was observed sampling leaves while milk remained its main food, an overlap between nursing and the first use of solid food.[3]

A COMMON MIX-UP

Is a striped young tapir necessarily a different species from a black-and-white adult?

No. The pattern changes during growth in the Malayan tapir.[3]

TRY A LITTLE REASONING

Why can a calf nibble leaves and still depend mainly on milk?

Reveal the explanation

Sampling solid food can precede full dietary independence. The observed calf nibbled leaves while milk remained its main food.[3]

Sources & editorial notes

Original explanations, checked against the sources below. The image has its own credit and licence above.

  1. NCBI Taxonomy — Tapirus indicus
  2. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance — Tapir
  3. Taipei Zoo — Malayan tapir calf development

Last fact check:

One discovery leads to another

White rhinocerosA wide mouth makes more sense than the colour in its name.Ceratotherium simum ↗Plains zebraA huge zebra herd can contain many smaller, lasting groups.Equus quagga ↗European hedgehogA spiny visitor with more than one kind of nest.Erinaceus europaeus ↗