When a tapir thinks there is danger, it heads for the nearest stream at top speed, crashing though the jungle like a runway locomotive. If a tapir is victorious in the race against its foe, it plunges into the water and swims swiftly away, often beneath the surface. Instinctively it know that deep water is its best protection against the hostile forces of the jungle.
Except durring the mating season, the tapir prefers to live alone. Sometime it gets enough courage to raid the gardens of the natives living in a jungle clearing. There are even report that tapir have been tamed. But for the most part the tapir spends its life alone near friendly water.