| Tapire-Iauara | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 As portrayed in The Secret Saturdays. | |||
| Naming | |||
| Others | Tapir Nymph Water Jaguar | ||
| Binomen | N/A | ||
| Morphology | |||
| Body type | Mammalian | ||
| Average height | Same as a cow | ||
| Intelligence | |||
| Sentience | Sentient | ||
| Sapience | Non-Sapient | ||
| Aggressivity | High | ||
| Ecology | |||
| Place of origin | South America | ||
| Habitat | Amphibious | ||
| Diet | Carnivorous | ||
| Locomotion | Quadrupedal Swimming | ||
| Behind the Scenes | |||
| Universe | Real | ||
The Tapire-Iauara, a.k.a. Tapir Nymph or Water Jaguar, is a South American cryptid from the Amazon basin, whose outlandish appearance combines aspects of tapirs and jaguars.
Biology[]
The Tapire-Iauara is an amphibious predator that spends most of its time in the vicinity of rivers, and patrolling flooded areas. Its overall body shape is reminiscent of a cow or tapir, but its head is more like a jaguar's, and it also has long droopy ears that it uses to slap the water with, possibly as means to communicate with others of its species and mark its territory.
The creature's paws have been described in many different ways: sometimes as claws, sometimes as hooves, and sometimes as webbed. Its waterproof fur is usually reddish in coloration, although some individuals can be golden, or black with a cream patch on the chest. Its body emits a putrid odor, which can be strong enough to induce fainting. Additionally, they have been described with the ability to mesmerize prey into stillness before attacking it. Their diet includes both fish and larger animals, up to and including caimans and humans. The smell of raw fish attracts them.
According to Jacques Cousteau, the beast patrols the flooded areas of the forest to guard it from humans. It's also known to approach boats to steal the fishermen's catch, and may devour the fishermen themselves if they try to fight it. Although they're formidably strong creatures, the Tapire-Iauara do have a few weaknesses. The resin of the Protium plant is capable of repelling them. Hiding on trees is also an effective measure of protection, as the beast is incapable of climbing.
Some cryptozoology enthusiasts have speculated that the Tapire-Iauara may represent a surviving mesonychid or entelodont species. Although these groups have never inhabited South America as far as it's known, they could have conceivably spread from North America to colonize the Amazon.