Strangest Animals In South America

The jaguarondi is a unique feline that is native to Central America and has a remnant population living Southern Texas.

Strangest animals in south america. They use thermals to conserve energy sometimes going a whole hour on a single wing flap. South Americas 20 genera of nonhuman primates compares with 6 in Central America 15 in Madagascar 23 in Africa and 19 in Asia. All South American monkeys are believed to be descended from ancestors that rafted over from Africa about 25 million years ago in a single dispersal event.

Photos of some interesting animals you might not of ever noticed before. From giant killer dolphins to the largest cat in the Americas this vast continent is a lethal predator battleground. Pacas can be found in northern South America in countries like Suriname all the way down Paraguay.

These stops included various South American locales including Argentina Uruguay and of course the Galápagos Islands. Coatis are omnivores who usually eat fruits some vegetation and invertebrates but have been. To his fortune plenty of eccentric mammals evolved in isolation in South America since the continent broke off from West Antarctica about 30 million years ago and only joined North America when a land bridge formed about 3 million years ago.

But survival is not assured because the abundant prey is closely followed by powerful predators. They can grow up to 40cm long and although they look quite disconcerting they are actually completely harmless. Anacondas can stay underwater for up to ten minutes.

To 19th century British naturalist Charles Darwin they were the strangest animals yet discovered one looking like a hybrid of a hippo rhino and rodent and another resembling a humpless. A cousin of the famous piranha the pacu also sports a serious set of teeth. At night when they are up and about they like to stay near the rivers to be able.

They are nocturnal so during the day they are either digging burrows near river banks in forests or sleeping in their burrows. Tarantula hawks can be found throughout South America and the United States where they make the desert their home. The artic hare and elk both live in cold artic environments.