Cute bara furry
This is largely due to the recognition that capybara molar teeth show strong variation in shape over the life of an individual. In recent years, the diversity of fossil hydrochoerines has been substantially reduced. The taxonomy of fossil hydrochoerines is also in a state of flux. Paleontological classifications previously used Hydrochoeridae for all capybaras, while using Hydrochoerinae for the living genus and its closest fossil relatives, such as Neochoerus, but more recently have adopted the classification of Hydrochoerinae within Caviidae. Since 2002, molecular phylogenetic studies have recognized a close relationship between Hydrochoerus and Kerodon, the rock cavies, supporting placement of both genera in a subfamily of Caviidae.
The living capybaras and their extinct relatives were previously classified in their own family Hydrochoeridae. The capybara and the lesser capybara belong to the subfamily Hydrochoerinae along with the rock cavies. The scientific name, both hydrochoerus and hydrochaeris, comes from Greek ὕδρω ( hydro "water") and χοῖρος ( choiros "pig, hog"). Its common name is derived from Tupi ka'apiûara, a complex agglutination of kaá (leaf) + píi (slender) + ú (eat) + ara (a suffix for agent nouns), meaning "one who eats slender leaves", or "grass-eater".