There are five species of Tapir – the South American /Brazilian tapir, the Malayan tapir, the Baird's tapir, the Kabomani tapir, and the Mountain tapir. Tapirs inhabit jungle and forest regions of South America, Central America, and South-eastern Asia. Closest relatives of tapirs are horses and rhinos. The snout is a fusion of nose and upper lip. It facilitates eating. Tapirs use it to grab leaves from the nearby branches, pick up the fruit from the ground or to find aquatic plant on the bottom of the water.
