THE TUCUTUCO. 65 



person, the first time he hears it, is much sur- 

 prised ; for it is not easy to tell whence it comes, 

 nor is it possible to guess what kind of creature 

 utters it. The noise consists in a short, but not 

 rough, nasal grunt, which is monotonously repeated 

 about four times in quick succession :* the name ', 

 Tucutuco is given in imitation of the sound. ' 

 Where this animal is abundant, it may be heard at 

 all times of the day, and sometimes directly be- 

 neath one's feet. When kept in a room, the tucu- 

 tucos move both slowly and clumsily, which ap- 

 pears owing to the outward action of their hind 

 legs ; and they are quite incapable, from the socket 

 of the thigh-bone not having a certain ligament, of 

 jumping even the smallest vertical height. They 

 are very stupid in making any attempt to escape ; 

 when angiy or frightened they uttered the tucu- 

 tuco. Of those I kept alive, several, even the first 

 day, became quite tame, not attempting to bite or 

 to run away ; others were a little wilder. 



The man who caught them asserted that very 

 many are invariably found blind. A specimen which 

 I preserved in spirits v/as in this state ; Mr. Reid 

 considers it to be the effect of inflammation in the 

 nictitating membrane. When the animal was alive 

 I placed my finger within half an inch of its head, 

 and not the slightest notice was taken : it made its 

 way, however, about the room nearly as well as 

 the others. Considering the strictly subterranean 

 habits of the tucutuco, the blindness, though so 

 common, cannot be a very serious evil ; yet it ap- 



* At the Rio Negro, in Northern Patagonia, there is an animal 

 of the same habits, and probably a closely allied species, but 

 which I never saw. Its noise is different from that of the Mal- 

 donado kind ; it is repeated only twice instead of three or four 

 times, and is more distinct and sonorous : when heard from a 

 distance, it so closely resembles the sound made in cutting down 

 a small tree with an axe, that I have sometimes remained in 

 doubt concerning it. 



Vol. I~5 F 2 



