Is it a bird I hear? No, it is not. That is the sound that little Eywa makes when she is hungry, and her caretaker Dylan shows her where the new yummy plant is. But tapirs as young as her can’t eat anything and require very special care, particularly those who have lost their family.
Discover how Eywa found new life at a reserve in Peru 👇
Tapirs (Tapirus) like Eywa need special care because they have a hindgut fermenter gastrointestinal system, similar to horses. Alongside a specific diet, she needs goat's milk supplemented with specific vitamins to replace her mother's milk since she was orphaned at birth.
Considering that tapirs need to be with their mothers for up to two years, it is understandable that Eywa needs emotional and psychological support too. Fortunately, she found her home and the special care she needed in a reserve located in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest.
Eywa and other species living there include ocelots (Leopardus pardalis), kinkajous (Potos flavus), jaguars (Panthera onca), and margays (Leopardus wiedii), among many others, all with difficult pasts and an immense need for rehabilitation, attention, and love.
This and other incredible work are carried out by our steward Hoja Nueva, located in a 7k-acre nature reserve in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest. The project focuses on wildlife research and rescuing injured, ill, and endangered animals like Eywa and many others. They are also the first to rewild ocelots and margays 🐾.
You can support their amazing work by downloading the Lemu app and looking for them inside our Atlas or typing "Hoja Nueva" in the search bar.
