Capivara Skate Park – Votorantim, Brazil - Atlas Obscura

Capivara Skate Park

Votorantim, Brazil

On the outskirts of the provincial city of Sorocaba , in the state of Sao Paulo, a large herd of Capybara , the worlds largest rodent species , can be seen wandering nonchalantly a skatepark, providing a unique opportunity to savour the surreal, South American Style.  

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On the outskirts of the provincial city of Sorocaba , Sao Paulo State some very unusual residents have taken up residence in a suburban skate park providing an opportunity to savour the surreal , South American style. 

A large herd of Capybara , the worlds largest rodent have moved into the skate park adjacent to the Sorocaba river.  Here these robust rodents graze nonchalantly, unperturbed by the vibrant colours of the graffiti enshrouded half-pipe and the clatter of carving and 180’s made by aspiring Tony Hawks. 

Embraced by many Sorocabano’s, these giant guinea pigs have been adopted as the mascot of the local skating scene and have even made National News on several occasions due to their antics such as seemingly politely crossing roads at the traffic lights. 

However, not everyone looks so fondly upon the rewilding of the area and concerns have been raised recently about the risks of transmission of zoonotic diseases from the capybara to humans.  This has prompted calls by some residents for a cull to reduce the size of the herd, thus putting the future prospects of seeing the capybara skate park in its full glory in question.  

 

Know Before You Go

The best time to see the Capybara is in the mid-to-late-afternoon when they return from cooling down in the nearby river to graze on grass. As of August 2018, there has been no cull, so it's still possible to see them. Please keep in mind that these are wild animals, and as such do not disturb or attempt to touch them.

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