Baird’s Tapir

Corcovado National Park, Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a small country in Central America. Located just north of the equator, it is bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the south and the Caribbean Sea to the north. Despite its modest size, the country offers a remarkably diverse environment, stretching from topical coastlines to cool mountainous regions that rise close to 4,000 meters above sea level. It is said that around 5% of the world’s species live here. Costa Rica prioritizes environmental conservation, maintains no military, and actively pursues a peaceful national identity.

Its rich natural setting is home to many creatures with distinctive appearances and behaviors. Among them is the Baird’s tapir. A curious creature, it resembles a horse in some ways, a pig in others, and somehow feels like a blend of several animals. The coastal forests where tapirs live are extremely humid and intensely hot, so they spend most of the day resting in the shade of the forest.

I waited at the beach early in the morning, hoping to see one emerge. Eventually, I spotted a tapir walking along the shoreline in the distance. It was quite large, and its pace was surprisingly brisk. From time to time, it would lower itself into tide pools, using them as natural basins - perhaps to cool down or to rid itself of parasites. It glanced at me briefly as I held my camera, then passed by at close range. It radiated vitality, with a peculiar aura.

In Japan, tapirs are said to eat dreams. But when I asked the locals, they had never heard such a story. The belief likely stems from a linguistic coincidence. In Japanese the word for tapir is baku - the same pronunciation as a mythical creature from ancient Chinese folklore said to devour nightmares. Some say the real tapir may have even inspired that legend.