The Internet's Favorite Animal Is Secretly Facing a Dark Fate. Some People Are Finally Trying to Change That.

A woman on a riverbank in São Paulo calls a capybara, and the animal hauls its heavy body from the water, climbs the bank, and accepts sugarcane offered by hand. Capybaras are the world’s largest rodents and are known for laid-back, Zen-like behavior, long heavy eyelids, and a distinctive rounded body shape that fuels internet popularity. They are native to South America and often seen enjoying water and coexisting with other animals. Despite their charm and meme status, many capybaras in Brazil have moved into new areas, where conditions can be difficult for them and for people nearby.

"“Princesa!” she sings. A giant, squarish brown head appears, cutting a wake as it heads toward shore. Webbed claws clutch at a rock, and slowly, awkwardly, the creature lifts her rounded, barrel-like body out of the river. Then she climbs the bank, through wild grass and past purple flowers, toward the friendly human who called her. The woman crouches, coaxing the animal with sweet compliments and a stick of sugarcane she brought with her. Huge front teeth bite down on the cane, and the creature chews."

"“Princesa” is probably familiar to you. Not her specifically, but her kind—she’s a capybara, a type of rodent. The world’s largest type of rodent, actually; a capybara can easily rival a golden retriever in size. And in charisma, too: Capybaras, native to South America, have become laid-back social media stars, globally beloved for their Zen-like acceptance of seemingly all other animals and their love of water. Their long, heavy eyelids give them a look of drowsy calm; the adjective most often associated with them is “chill.”"

"“Watching a capybara come when called is a highly Instagrammable moment, my in-person proof that capybaras have rightfully earned their status as a 2020s internet meme. But on my visit to the Pinheiros River in São Paulo, South America’s largest city, I also saw up close how not all capybaras are living their best life, to put it lightly.”"

Read at Slate Magazine