576 



THE AGOUTI. 



covered with long, coarse, blackish-brown hair, among which the short pointed quills 

 are so deeply set, that, except in the head, tail, and hinder quarters, they are scarcely 

 perceptible. These spines are largely used by the American Indians in the decoration 

 of their hunting-pouches, moccasins, and other articles, and after the quills are ex- 

 tracted, the remainder of the fur is sufficiently soft to be used for clothing. The flesh of 

 the Urson is considered eatable, and is said to bear some resemblance to flabby pork. 

 The length of -the Urson is not quite four feet, the head and body measuring rather 

 more than three feet, and the tail about nine inches. The teeth are of a bright 

 orange. 



IN Southern America, the Porcupines find a representative in the COENDOO, an 

 animal which is not only remarkable for its array of quills, but also for the prehensile 

 power of its long tail. 



As might be presumed, from the prehensile tail and the peculiarly armed claws, the 

 Coendoo is of arboreal habits, finding its food among the lofty branches of trees. On 

 the level ground it is slow and awkward, but among the more congenial boughs it 

 climbs with great ease, drawing itself from branch to branch by means of its hooked 

 claws ; but seldom using its tail, except as an aid in descent. The food of this animal 

 consists of leaves, flowers, fruit, bark, and the soft woolly substance of young and 

 tender branches, which it slices easily with its chisel-edged incisor teeth. During the 

 summer months the Coendoo becomes extremely fat, and its flesh is then in great 

 request, being both delicate in flavor and tender in character. The young of this 

 animal are born in the month of September or October, and are very few in number. 



The total length of the Coendoo is about three feet six inches, of which the tail oc- 

 cupies one foot six inches. Its nose is thick and blunt, like that of the common Por- 

 cupine, and the face is furnished with very long whisker-hairs of a deep black. The 

 numerous spines which cover the body are parti-colored, being black in the centre and 

 white at each extremity. Their length is rather more than two inches on the back, an 

 inch and a half on the fore-legs, and not quite an inch on the hinder limbs. A number 

 of short quills are also set upon the basal half of the tail, the remainder of that organ 

 being furnished with scales, and tapering to its extremity. The color of the scales is 

 black. The entire under surface of the tail is covered with similar scales, among which 

 are interspersed a number of bright chestnut hairs. The abdomen, breast, and inner 

 face of the limbs are clothed with dense, brown, coarse hairs. 



It is a nocturnal animal ; sleeping by day, and feeding by night. 



THE two succeeding animals bear some resemblance to each other, but may be dis- 

 tinguished by the different shape of the head, and the structure of the feet and toes. 

 These technical distinctions maybe found in the list of generic differences which closes 

 the first volume of this work. There are several species of Agoutis, the COMMON 

 AGOUTI being considered as the type of the genus, and their habits being very similar. 



The Agouti is a native of Brazil, Paraguay, Guiana, and other neighboring countries, 

 but its numbers have been considerably thinned in many spots where cultivation has 

 been industriously carried on. In some of the Antilles, where it formerly swarmed, it 

 is now nearly extirpated, and in St. Domingo is but rarely seen. It is a voracious 

 animal, eating almost every kind of vegetable food, having, however, an unfortunate 

 preference for those plants which have been reared under human superintendence. It 

 is especially fond of roots, such as potatoes and yams, and is so destructive among 

 sugar-canes that the planters are forced to wage a war of extermination against the 

 Agouti before they can hope for a good crop. Very few of these animals are to be 

 found in any spot where the sugar-cane has been cultivated to any extent. Besides 

 plants and nuts, the Agouti eats various fruits, displaying a strong predilection for 

 nuts. Like many of the rodent animals, it is capable of varying its diet with animal 

 substances, and will seldom refuse a piece of meat if offered. 



It is a tolerably swift animal, as might be supposed from the great comparative length 

 of its hinder limbs, but does not appear to be capable of sustaining a long chase. Open 

 country is on that account rather distasteful to the Agouti, who prefers wooded districts, 



