New Mexico mammals

Collared Peccary in New Mexico

Pecari tajacu

Native to New Mexico

Not listed as nonindigenous in New Mexico by USGS NAS; treated as native to its mapped New Mexico range.

IUCN Red List status

  1. LC
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX

LC – Least Concern

Widespread and abundant; not at risk.

Two collared peccaries standing together in warm evening lightCollared peccary in profile with its jaws parted, showing straight tusks and a pale shoulder collarA sounder of four collared peccaries standing on rocky ground and facing the cameraCollared peccary facing forward on a wet forest floor in tropical woodlandCollared peccary walking in profile across short green grassCollared peccary partly screened by a desert agave in dry Southwestern scrub
Photo: Eleanor Pate · CC BY 4.0Two collared peccaries standing together in warm evening lightPhoto: Cody Stricker · CC BY 4.0A javelina in profile, jaws parted to show the short, straight tusks that separate peccaries from pigs.Photo: adel-fridus · CC0A small sounder faces outward together, the herd's default answer to anything unfamiliar.Photo: Alejandro Alfredo Aguirre · CC BY 4.0In the tropical south of its range the same animal lives in humid forest rather than desert.Photo: Shawn · CC0A lone javelina on the move. Adults rarely stray far from the rest of the herd.Photo: William · CC0A javelina works through dry desert scrub, the habitat that defines its range at the US border.

Collared Peccary in New Mexico, by the numbers

Common in New Mexico 29th most recorded of 176 mammals logged in New Mexico

811 occurrence records
743 with iNaturalist photos
Jul 4, 2026 Last seen in New Mexico

Records from 2000–2026.

811 total records count every New Mexico occurrence from GBIF and iNaturalist; the map plots a georeferenced sample of 300; the monthly chart covers the 809 records with a full observation date.

When to look for the Collared Peccary in New Mexico

Most sightings fall in November to April.

809 New Mexico occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) by month of year, 2000–2026. Shows when the species is recorded, not a guarantee of presence.

Monthly New Mexico records (table)
MonthRecords
January92
February83
March109
April78
May65
June53
July33
August35
September34
October49
November80
December98

Monthly collared peccary occurrence records (iNaturalist and GBIF) in New Mexico, 2000–2026.

Seasonality

Year-round in New Mexico, with recorded sightings peaking in November–April.

Occurrence map

Where Collared Peccary has been recorded in New Mexico

300 records mapped · zoom and drag to explore

300 New Mexico records mapped

Notable places to look

Park, forest, or monumentiNaturalist records
Carlsbad Caverns National Park 23
State Trust Land 20
Gila Wilderness 11
Organ Mountains - Desert Peaks National Monument 8
Heart Bar Wildlife Management Area 8
Rio Grande corridor 4
Living Desert State Park 4
Rio Grande Valley State Park 4

Protected places with the most collared peccary sightings, from the USGS Protected Areas Database plus named mountain ranges, good spots to look, not a full breakdown, so they don't sum to the total.

Where it's recorded in New Mexico

CountyRecords
Socorro County 395
Grant County 72
Doña Ana County 69
Hidalgo County 65
Eddy County 62
Catron County 58
Sierra County 30
Luna County 18
Otero County 9
Bernalillo County 6
Lea County 6
Chaves County 5
6 other counties 16

The complete county distribution, spread across 18 New Mexico counties. Every occurrence record falls in one county, so these sum to the total. Counties from GBIF and US Census boundaries.

The collared peccary, better known in New Mexico as the javelina, reaches the northern edge of its range along the Rio Grande. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge alone accounts for roughly two-thirds of the state’s top-place sightings, with smaller clusters trailing south to Carlsbad Caverns National Park and the Chihuahuan Desert around Elephant Butte Lake.

Records peak in the cooler months, rising through January and again in December, the reverse of the summer bump seen in most other New Mexico mammals. Javelina herds are easiest to spot foraging in daylight once temperatures drop, which likely explains the shift.

No NatureServe state rank has been published for the species in New Mexico, but with more than 800 records logged since 2000, it’s a regularly documented part of the state’s desert wildlife.

Occurrence data from iNaturalist and GBIF.

Collared Peccary in other states

Two collared peccaries standing together in warm evening light
Full species profile Collared Peccary Pecari tajacu Size 1.2–1.4 m3.9–4.5 ft Weight 16–27 kg35.3–59.5 lb Lifespan 7 yr View the full profile

More mammals in New Mexico in the atlas

Data & sources

The data and visualizations on this page draw on these open sources:

  • GBIFCC-BY 4.0occurrence records behind the range map, elevation, and record counts
  • iNaturalistCC0 / CC-BY / CC-BY-SAobservations, photos, and audio recordings
  • IUCN Red Listattributed factthe global conservation status
  • USGS NASpublic domainnative / introduced status
  • Natural Earthpublic domainthe relief basemap
  • USFSpublic domainnational-forest boundaries
  • USGS Protected Areas Databasepublic domainthe named parks, forests, and refuges behind "notable places to look"