124 SPORT m NORTH AMERICA. 



The peccary {Dicotyles tajacu) certainly resembles 

 both the domestic pig and the wild boar. In form, it 

 is nearer the pig; but its bristles, which are sprinkled 

 over the reddish skin, can be raised at will like the 

 quills of the porcupine, and especially when it is angry. 

 In this, it resembles the wild boar more nearly than 

 any other species of the race. The bristles of the 

 peccary are coloured in bands, the part nearest the 

 skin being white, and the tips of a chocolate colour. 

 The peccary has no tail ; but the place where this 

 appendage should be is occupied by a fleshy protu- 

 berance. Another remarkable peculiarity is, that 

 the peccarj^ has no navel in the place where that is 

 usually found. On the back, just above the rump, 

 there is a shapeless lump, which contains the musky 

 liquor which the animal ejects when it is angr}^ a 

 power which it has in common with the civet and 

 the musk rat of South America. The fore-quarters, 

 neck, and head of the peccary resemble those of the 

 wild boar, but the hinder-quarters are more slen- 

 derly formed. The feet and legs are like those of 

 the boar. The food which it most affects is com- 

 posed of acorns, berries, roots, sugar-cane, grain, 

 and reptiles of every description. 



Whilst speaking of the habits and conformation 

 of this animal, something ought to be said about its 

 peculiar mode of sleeping. The lair of the peccary 

 is usually to be found in the middle of a thick and 

 impenetrable tuft of sugar-canes, growing in a 



