white-lipped peccary

[hwahyt-lipt pek-uh-ree, wahyt‐]

noun

plural

white-lipped peccaries ,

plural

white-lipped peccary .

1. a brown or black peccary (Tayassu pecari ) with short, sharp tusks, found in a range of habitats, especially rainforests, in Central and South America, where it travels great distances in herds in pursuit of fruit, the chief component of its diet: due mostly to excessive hunting by poachers and deforestation, the species is listed as vulnerable.

Word History and Origins

Origin of white-lipped peccary¹

First recorded in 1825–30; white ( def. ) + lipped ( def. ) + peccary ( def. )

Example Sentences

So does the white-lipped peccary, a shy pig that tends to disappear quickly when there’s hunting pressure.

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In Costa Rica, a new ecotourism initiative to help conserve the once-common white-lipped peccary — similar to a wild boar — has seen few visitors.

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The white-lipped peccary herds in large numbers, migrating apparently in regular order in companies sometimes a thousand strong.

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In size, however, there is a great difference between the two: the white-lipped peccary weighing 100 pounds, or nearly twice the weight of the collared species.

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The larger species—the white-lipped peccary—is dreaded by the farmers, as it frequently, in large numbers, attacks their crops, choosing always the most flourishing fields.

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