xv GUIANA PIG AND RESTLESS CAVY 49 3 



in the river, furnished with open water, and also beds of 

 ' camelotes,' -a sloping open grassy bank on one side, where the 

 Carpinchos can lie in the daytime in the cooler weather, 

 sleeping and basking in the sunshine ; on the other a low 

 shelving bank, clothed with ' Sarandi ' scrub growing out into 

 the black reeking mud and shallow water beyond." They always 

 take to the water when alarmed, at a rate and with a gait which 

 reminded Mr. Aplin of a Pig. When in the water they swim 

 slowly with the upper part of the head, including nose, eyes, and 

 ears, above the surface. But they can dive for a considerable 

 time and distance, and baffle their enemies by seeking the shelter 

 of a mass of water-plants, and lying there with their noses only 

 just above the surface. 



The genus Dolichotis l has long ears, and generally resembles 

 a rather long-legged Hare in appearance. The front>-feet are four- 

 toed, the hind three-toed. The Patagonian Cavy, as this animal 

 is called, has twelve dorsal vertebrae, and rudimentary clavicles. 2 

 The paroccipital processes are long ; the incisors are white, and 

 are not grooved in front. The sternum has six pieces, and 

 seven ribs reach it. 



Cavia, including the species C. porcellus, the Guinea-pig (which 

 name is a corruption apparently of Guiana pig), has the same 

 number of toes on its hind- and fore-feet as has the Capybara. 

 The name applied to the wild stock whence our Guinea-pig is 

 derived is the Eestless Cavy. The fur is greyish ; of the domestic 

 animals the colour is too well known to need description. 



Fam. 4. Dasyproctidae. The genus Coelogenys includes but two 

 species. C. paca, known as the "Spotted Cavy" or "Paca," has a 

 brown body, with white spots like those of a Dasyure ; it is one of 

 the largest of Rodents, and has a quite short tail. The hand and 

 foot are both provided with five digits ; but the thumb is small, 

 and in the foot the three middle toes considerably exceed the 

 others in length. The hind-foot is practically three-toed.- The 

 fibula is not nearly so reduced as in Dolichotis. The skull of 

 the animal is remarkable for the extraordinary development in 

 breadth of the jugal arch, which is sculptured externally. There 

 is a large cavity formed below, at the maxillary end of this huge 



1 Beddard, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1891, p. 236. 



2 These are stated by Tullberg to be absent. I have found them, but they are 

 very small bones, not more than half an inch long. 



