The body of the tapir is rounded and covered with sparse fur. Its snout is long and flexible.
Tapirs live in dense forest, browsing by night on leaves and twigs.
Usually found near water, they swim well and drink a great deal. They often take to water when threatened and can crash through thick underbrush with great speed. The Asian tapir, Tapirus indicus, of Malaya and Sumatra, is black with a white saddle extending over the rump. There are three New World species. The South American tapir, T. terrestris, inhabits marshy lowlands from Colombia to N Argentina.