THE TUCUTUCO. 



103 



tucutuco," says that author, "is extremely abundant in 

 some parts of the country, but is difficult to be procured, 

 and still more difficult to be seen when at liberty. It 

 lives almost entirely underground, and prefers a sandy 

 soil with a gentle inclination. The burrows are said not 

 to be deep, but of great length. They are seldom open ; 

 the earth being thrown up at the mouth into hillocks, 

 not quite so large as those made by the mole. Conside- 

 rable tracts of country are so completely undermined by 

 these animals, that horses, in passing over, sink above 

 their fetlocks. The tucutucos appear, to a certain de- 

 gree, to be gregarious The man who ])rocured speci- 

 mens for me had caught six together, and he said this 



