Eira barbara is a diurnal, sometimes crepuscular species (Reid 2009, González-Maya et al. 2009), solitary that travels within a big home range (Sunquist et al. 1989). It seems to be a forest species, using both floor and tree habitats. Emmons and Feer (1990) affirmed that Tayra inhabits tropical and subtropical forests, secondary rain forests, gallery forests, gardens, plantations, cloud forests, and dry scrub forests. Hall and Dalquest (1963) affirmed that it can live near human habitations, crops and other human disturbed habitats, and has been reported in fragmented landscapes of Colombia, even feeding on mango fruits (J. F. González-Maya pers. comm. 2015). It has been said usually to occur below 1,200 m, but there are reports up to 2,400 m (Eisenberg 1989, Emmons and Feer 1990) and is common at 2,000 m (J.F. Gonzalez-Maya pers. comm. 2015).

Diet is omnivorous, including fruits, carrion, small vertebrates, insects, and honey and small vertebrates as marsupials, rodents, iguanids among others (Cabrera and Yepes 1960, Hall and Dalquest 1963, Galef et al. 1976, Emmons and Feer 1990). This species does well in agricultural areas and along the edge of human settlements.

This species occurs from southern Veracruz, Mexico, throughout Mesoamerica and south across South America to northern Argentina, occurring throughout except for the high Andes and the Caatinga (eastern Brazil).

Tayra occurs in numerous protected areas. Honduras lists this species under CITES Appendix III.