Okay, let’s pull up to the after party this weekend with the capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris)! Weighing up to 174 lbs (79 kg), this critter is the world’s largest rodent. Thanks to an abundance of fatty tissue, the capybara is buoyant in water—making it perfectly suited for a semi-aquatic lifestyle.
The capybara inhabits wetlands in regions of South America including Venezuela and Brazil. This highly social species can sometimes be spotted in groups of more than 100 individuals.
Photo: Clodomiro Esteves Junior, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
