144 



NATURAL HISTORY. 



difference of colouring from the wild animal. Sevei'al allied species inhabit the great plains of South 

 America. 



The BOLIVIAN CAVY (Cavia boliviensis), which is grey in colour, with a faint yellowish tinge, 

 with the throat and belly white, the feet whitish, and the incisor teeth orange yellow, inhabits the 

 elevated parts of Bolivia, generally at a height of 10,000 or 12,000 feet. The ROCK CAVY (Cavia 

 rupestris) is found in rocky districts in Brazil, where it shelters itself in holes and crevices. It is 

 always found near the upper waters of rivers, and is a large species, measuring thirteen or fourteen 

 inches in length. The SOUTHERN CAVY (Cavia australis), on the other hand, is a small species which 

 inhabits Patagonia, where it ranges from 39 S. lat. to the Strait of Magellan. 



This part of the world is also the abode of another and much larger species of the family, the 



PATAGONIAN CAVY or MARA (Dolichotis 

 patachonica], an animal which some- 

 what resembles the Agouti in the 

 length and comparative slenderness of 

 its legs, and differs from all other 

 Cavies in having tolerably long, pointed 

 eai-s. It also possesses a very short 

 tail. The molar teeth are rather small, 

 and resemble those of the Guinea-pig in 

 being formed of two nearly equal angu- 

 lar lobes, but the last molar in the upper 

 jaw, and the first in the lower jaw, have 

 three such lobes. The animal is some- 

 what Hare-like in its appearance, and 

 has been mistaken for a Hare by super- 

 ficial observers. It is, however, a 

 much larger animal, measuring from 

 thirty to thirty-six inches in length, 

 and weighing from twenty to thirty- six 

 pounds. 



The Patagonian Cavy is clothed 

 with a dense crisp fur of a grey colour 

 on the upper part of the head and body, 

 rusty yellow on the flanks, and white on 

 the chin, throat, and belly ; the rump is 



black, with a broad white band crossing it immediately above the tail. It inhabits Patagonia about as 

 far south as 48, and extends northwards into the La Plata territory as far as Mendoza. It is found only 

 in the sterile desert part of the country, where the gravelly plains are thinly covered with a few 

 stunted thorny bushes and a scanty herbage. The northern limit of the species, according to Mr. 

 Darwin, is at the point where the vegetation of the plains becomes rather more luxuriant. The 

 Patagonian Cavy usually burrows in the ground, but where it lives in the same region as the Viscacha, 

 it will take advantage of the excavations made by that animal. It wanders to considerable distances 

 from its home, and on these excursions two or three are usually seen together. Mr. Darwin says : 

 " It is a common feature in the landscape of Patagonia to see in the distance two or three of these 

 Cavies hopping one after the other over the gravelly plains." Their mode of running, on the same 

 authority, more nearly resembles that of the Rabbit than of the Hare ; though their limbs are long, 

 they do not run very fast. They rarely squat like a Hare, but are very shy and watchful, and feed by 

 day, in connection with which it is to be observed that the eyes are defended from the direct rays of 

 the sun by well-developed eyelashes, which do not occur in the other Cavies. The female produces 

 generally two young at a birth, which are brought forth and suckled in the burrow. 



The CAPYBARA (Hydrochcerus capybara), the only other member of the present family, is 

 the largest of all existing Rodents, large specimens measuring over four feet in length. It is a stout- 

 built and massive animal, with limbs of moderate length, a large head with a very blunt muzzle, small 



PATAGOXIAN CAVY. 



