258 



GNAWING ANIMALS 



The Agouti (Dasyprocata agouti) looks like the tiny, 

 hornless deer of the East Indies (Tragulus) that is no larger 

 than a rabbit. It is odd that two genera of mammals 

 should look so much alike and anatomically be so far apart. 



Wf^-y. ■ '^^^p- 



Photographed from life in the New York Zoological Park. 



THE AGOUTI. 



The Agouti represents a very odd genus. The illustra- 

 tion renders a description of its form unnecessary. In a 

 land reeking with ocelots, pumas, jaguars, and anacondas, 

 the wary little Agouti, like the dikdik antelope of the East 

 African plateau, lives by hiding in the grass and plants that 

 cover the ground, and is very difficult to find without dogs. 

 There are several species, inhabiting southern Mexico, Cen- 

 tral and South America, all of which are regarded as edible. 

 In colors they vary from a sooty brown so dark that the 

 animal seems almost black to the beautiful bright orange- 



