Bet you never saw one of these guys. The Tayra, also known as Perico ligero, is part of the weasel family and thrives in Corcovado National Park and the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, Costa Rica. As you may know, Costa Rica is home to a wide variety of animals and is considered one of the best places in the world to see animals. There are a lot of people taking eco-friendly trips to the country just to do birding and enjoy nature.
Costa Rica has so many national parks and protected areas, it truly is a paradise for animal lovers and wildlife watching enthusiasm. The Tyra Animal is just a species among all the others you can find here. They are nocturnal, furry animals that live in hollow trees. There’s a bunch of people using them as pets, it is well known that tyras were used by indigenous people of Central America as a way to control rodents. Here are some amazing facts about the tyra animal.
So when you have a friendly welcome from this curious animal, you’ll know these quick facts about it:
Facts About the Tayra Animal
1. They are omnivorous like to eat fruit, carrion, small mammals, reptiles, and birds.
2. Their homes are usually in hollow trees, burrows in the ground, or nests of tall grass.
3. Tayras are expert climbers and can leap from treetop to treetop when pursued. They also run fast and swim well.
4. Tayras grow to be around 60 cm. Yet their tails are almost 45 cm long.
5. They are nocturnal animals.
6. Tayras are really loud when they talk. Their litters can have up to 2 active, playful young.
7. The Indigenous use them as pets to control vermin problems and call them: ‘Cabeza del Viejo’ (Old Man’s Head), due to their wrinkled facial skin.
8. Fortunately, they are on the Least Concern species list.
