Peccaries resemble domestic pigs, as they have a common ancestor. Adult Collared Peccaries can be up to a meter long, from nose to tail, and weigh as much as 30 kg, but usually less. They have proportionately large heads, slender legs, and coarse, dark fur with a white collar.

The total adult length of the white-lipped peccary is 90-135 cm. They stand approximately 65 cm at the shoulder, weighing 27-40 kg and sometimes more. There is no external sexual dimorphism, but the canine teeth of the male are longer than those of the female.

Peccaries are highly social animals - often scent-marking one another as well as physical territory. When feeling threatened, Pecari will clash its canine teeth together as a warning. They have been recorded sprinting up to 35 km/hr. Pecari's sense of smell is so good that it is capable of detecting bulbs 5-8 cm below the soil's surface. If wounded or threatened, may attack as entire herd. The herd can consist of up to 50 members.

Mostly herbivorous, Collared Peccaries eat bulbs, tubers, cactus fruit, and insects. They especially enjoy prickly pears.

Collaried peccaries are sometimes called "musk hogs" because of a strong odor emitted from musk glands near the rump and eyes.They are also called "javelinas," the Spanish word for javelin, because of their short, straight tusks, which they use for defense.

All species are hunted for subsistence, commercial, and/or sport purposes. Two species are additionally targeted for the commercial value of their hide. Perhaps the greatest threat to peccaries, however, is the clearing and fragmentation of the habitats in which they reside.

There is no sexual dimorphism by size or colour. The total adult length is about 90 cm (80-97 cm), shoulder height is 40-45 cm while the weight of 14-24 kg averages 20 kg (294, 336, 372, 382). The average weight of a sample of 27 specimens in the collection of the Rancho Grande Biological Station in Venezuela was 16.7 kg, with a standard deviation of 3.44 kg and a maximum weight of 22.5 kg. In Arizona, USA, Collared Peccaries can reach 89-97 cm, stand 46-56 cm at the shoulder and weigh 14-27 kg (559). Bodily size may vary by subspecies, region and/or type of habitat, but there is very little on this in the literature.