Young females are able to give birth to offspring as early as their second year. Gestation lasts about five months and results in the birth of usually four young. Most capybaras are born in the spring, which in the southern hemisphere is during the months of September-October.
There is a very high mortality rate of up to 95% among young capybaras. Adults are able to live up to 10 years, but such a situation rarely occurs in the wild due to the presence of numerous predators that hunt them.
