Malayan Tapir

The Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus), also called the Asian Tapir, is the largest of the four species of tapir and the only one native to Asia. The scientific name refers to the East Indies, the species' natural habitat. In the Malay language, the tapir is commonly referred to as "cipan" or "tenuk."[2] General appearance and characteristics The animal is easily identified by its markings, most notably the light-colored saddle which extends from its shoulders to its rump. The rest of its hair is black, except for the tips of its ears which, as with other tapirs, are rimmed with white. This pattern is for camouflage: the disrupted coloration makes it more difficult to recognize it as a tapir, and other animals may mistake it for a large rock rather than a form of prey when it is lying down to sleep.[3] SkeletonMalayan Tapirs grow to between 6 and 8 feet (1.8 to 2.4 m) in length, stand 3 to 3.5 feet (90 to 107 cm) tall, and typically weigh between 550 and 700 pounds (250 to 320 kg), although they can weigh up to 1,100 pounds (500 kg).[4] The females are usually larger than the males. Like the other types of tapir, they have small stubby tails and long, flexible proboscises. They have four toes on each front foot and three toes on each back foot. The Malayan Tapir has rather poor eyesight but excellent hearing and sense of smell. [edit] Skeletal System The tapir has bone structure similar to all other mammals, they have the essentials of the mammalian skeleton; a skull, a spinal cord made of vertebrae that hold the ribcage, which encases major organs, four limbs, and a tail. They have a spinal column composed of small bones with aligned holes in the center that form a protected tube that houses and protects their spinal cord. The spinal cord is divided into five regions, the cervical vertebrae, the thoracic vertebrae, the lumbar vertebrae, the sacral vertebrae, and the caudal vertebrae. The cervical vertebrae support the neck, and the first vertebrate is called the atlas. The atlas has two depressions which correspond with the two bumps at the bottom of the skull called the occipital condyles. The second vertebrae is called axis. The next region of the spinal cord is called the thoracic vertebrae, and these are the vertebrae from which the ribs extend out, forming the ribcage. The lumbar vertebrae are the vertebrates that go from the end of the ribs to the back legs, and the sacral vertebrae are the vertebrates that support the pelvic girdle. The caudal vertebrae are the bones of the tail, which although hold some nerves and blood vessels, does not hold the spinal column, as it ends just before the caudal vertebrae. What makes the skeleton of the tapir so unique to that of other mammals is their skull. They have a large sagittal crest, a bone running along the middle of the skull that is necessary for muscle attachment. They also have unusually positioned orbits, an unusually shaped cranium with the frontal bones elevated, and a retracted nasal incision. All of these modifications to the normal mammal skull are, of course, to make room for the proboscis to sit. This proboscis caused retraction of bones and cartilage in the face during the evolution of the tapir, and even caused the loss of some cartilages, facial muscles, and the bony wall of the nasal chamber.