Chapter 24: Collared peccary Pecari spp. (Linnaeus, 1758)257
do not currently have peccaries. The species range has recently
expanded northward in the southwestern USA (Albert et al.
2004) including into Oklahoma adjacent to Texas (Stangl &
Dalquest 1990). The collared peccary is distributed from sea
level to almost 3000 m a.s.l. (Sierra Las Minas, Guatemala;
Gongora et al. 2011a; Taber et al. 2011).
Subspecies
The collared peccary is recognized as a single species, but there
are contrasting findings about the evolutionary relationships
with other extant peccary species (see Chapter 1 in this book).
Phenotypic, morphological, chromosomal, and DNA data have
shown some level of differentiation within the collared peccary.
DNA studies have shown that sequence divergence between col-
lared peccaries from distant geographical origins is as extreme
or even higher as that between white-lipped and Chacoan pec-
caries (Gongora & Moran 2005).
Variations in size and pelage colour, coupled with distri-
bution data, have been the basis for proposing the existence
of 14 subspecies of collared peccaries (Hall 1981; Grubb &
Groves 1993), which have been divided into three subconti-
nental groups: ‘angulatus’ or grey Central American forms
(angulatus, sonoriensis, nanus, humeralis, yucatanensis, cras-
sus, nelsoni, and nigrescens) distributed in North and Central
America; patira or blackish forms with very poorly expressed
collar and dorsal stripe (patira, torvus, crusnigrum, niger, and
bangsi) distributed in central Panama across South American
countries near the Equatorial line including Colombia,
Venezuela, Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana, Ecuador, and
central Peru; and tajacu or grey to buffy subspecies with clearly
marked pale collar and black dorsal stripe (tajacu) distributed
from the south of some of these Equatorial countries across
Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, and northern Argentina (Bodmer &
Sowls 1993; Grubb & Groves 1993). However, comprehensive
morphological, cytogenetic, genetic, and genomic studies of
the genus across the Americas need to be undertaken to con-
clusively delineate species and subspecies and assist in defining
priorities of conservation.
In Colombia, the presence of four (bangsi, niger, patira, and
tajacu) out of the 14 proposed subspecies above, the presence of
two distinct DNA lineages and two possible different karyotypes
in collared peccaries (Gongora et al. 2006, 2011b; Sabogal &
Sandra 2011) certainly provide venues for interaction and
hybridization between lineages in this region. Some preliminary
evidence of possible hybridization is given by the uncoupling
of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA sequence variation in
two specimens from Colombia, which may suggest the recent
contact of isolated populations within Colombia and possi-
ble mitochondrial introgression between the North/Central
and South American clades representing two possible species
(Gongora et al. 2006). In addition, cytogenetic data of a single
captive specimen from Colombia shows that this is heterozy-
gous for a balanced translocation, which may represent a hybrid
from the two karyotypes observed in the species (Builes et al.
2004) possibly representing the interactions between the two
different DNA lineages found in collared peccaries (Gongora
et al. 2006). Further chromosome and DNA studies including
from wild populations are required to better understand chro-
mosomal polymorphisms and hybridization between collared
peccary genetic lineages in Colombia.Descriptive Notes
The collared peccary is the smallest of the three extant species of
peccaries and ranges in total body length from 78.8 to 106 cm,
height between 30 and 51 cm and a general range of 15–28 kg
weight (Sowls 1997). However, some individuals have reached
42 kg in Arizona and in some areas of Peru (Taber et al. 2011).
Collared peccary from Cozumel Island on the Caribbean coast
of Mexico are on average the shortest of all populations with
an average body length of only 82.3 cm (Merriam 1901). The
collared peccary head is relatively large but ends in a smaller
nasal disc than the other species. The legs are shorter than white-
lipped and Chacoan peccaries. The body is covered by darkish
grey hairs with a distinctive white collar that extends from the
chest to the shoulders and gives its particular name to the spe-
cies (Figure 24.2; Sowls 1997). However, pelage colour may dif-
fer substantially within the species even in the same area such
as in Colombia (Gongora et al. 2006). Variation in coat colour
goes from greyish forms in the north of the range to darker in
the Central American countries and grey again in the southern
extreme. In addition, their lighter collar pattern may vary from
being very distinct in some individuals to barely noticeable in
others (Figure 24.3). A line of dark hair starts at the back of the
head and ends at the tail and is more pronounced in the juve-
niles (Sowls 1997; Gongora et al. 2006). Newborns and juveniles
are reddish with the dark line of the back highlighted (Sowls
1997). A scent gland about 7.5 cm in diameter is located on the
lower back along the mid-dorsal line, approximately 15 cm from
the base of the tail. This gland emits a strong scent that can be
detected several hundred metres away and that may function as
a way to maintain cohesiveness among the group, or as a territo-
rial mark (Sowls 1997; Taber et al. 2011).Habitat
The collared peccary has the most extended distribution range
of the three species and is the most adaptable; it lives in a wide
array of habitat conditions from semi-arid areas in Arizona, New
Mexico, and Texas to tropical perennial forest in the Amazon
forest (Sowls 1997). Collared peccary tolerates temperatures
as high as 45°C during the day and freezing temperatures at
night in the northern extreme of its distribution. This species’
tolerance to low temperatures may explain its ability to inhabit
further north than the other two species (Sowls 1997). It is well-
adapted to arid environments by feeding in foods rich in water
contents such as cactus and also by resting in the shade during
the hot hours of the day (Sowls 1997). In the northern extreme
the species also inhabits montane conifer forests at higher alti-
tudes. At the other extreme of the distribution range, the col-
lared peccary inhabits tall, perennial tropical mature forest in
the Amazon region and even pre-montane forest in the Andean
foothills, with a maximum reported altitude of 2000 and 3000
m a.s.l. in Ecuador and Sierra Las Minas in Guatemala, respec-
tively (Taber et al. 2011)..02612:46:11