AGUTIS AND PACAS. i 77 



until some days after birth. When first born the young closely resemble their 

 parents. If captured at a sufficiently early age, agutis can be readily tamed ; and 

 it is not uncommon in South American houses to find one or more of these animals 

 roaming at large. The nocturnal foes of the aguti are the ocelot and other 

 species of cats, and also the Brazilian wolf. They are much hunted by the 

 natives for the sake of their flesh. Bates writes that on the Amazons they are 

 hunted with dogs; the method being for one hunter to proceed in the early 

 morning to beat the forest in the neighbourhood of a river, while his companion 

 takes his station in a boat. On being hard pressed by the dogs, the agutis at once 

 make for the water, where they are shot by the man in waiting. 



The only other member of the genus to which we shall allude is 



Agucni. . . 



the aguchi (1>. cristata), which inhabits Northern Brazil and Guiana 

 as well as parts of the West Indies. This species is distinguished from the others 

 by its smaller size, and its longer and more slender tail, which is clothed with 

 silver-white hairs. Its general colour is rich chestnut-brown, with a characteristic 

 bright golden yellow, or rust-coloured patch behind each ear. 



It may be added that fossilised remains of agutis are met with abundantly in 

 the caverns of Lagoa Santa, in BraziL 



The Rodent known in South America 1>\- the title of paca 

 (Ccelogenys paca) is readuy distinguished externally from all its allies 

 by the longitudinal rows of light spots ornamenting 

 its fur; while internally it is remarkable for the 

 extraordinary structure of its skull. Its hind-feet 

 are distinguished from those of the agutis by having 

 five distinct toes ; and the limbs are much shorter 

 and the whole build far more massive than in the 

 latter. In the skull, as shown in the accompanying 

 figure, the zygomatic or cheek-arches are great I \ 

 expanded from above downwards, so as to form 



huge bony capsules on the sides of the face, each of which encloses a large cavity 

 communicating by a narrow aperture with the mouth. Externally the paca is 

 stout-bodied, measuring about 2 feet in length, with rather short limbs, and a 

 broad head, terminating in a blunted muzzle covered with tine hair. The ears are 

 rather small, and but scantily clothed with hair : the feet are naked below ; and 

 the tail is reduced to a fleshy tubercle. The fur is coarse, and closely applied to 

 the body. Its general colour varies from fawn to blackish; and the number of 

 longitudinal rows of spots is likewise variable, being in some instances only three, 

 while in others there may be five such rows. The female has two pairs of teats, 

 placed at a considerable distance apart. 



The common paca has a very extensive range, being found throughout the 

 greater part of South America as far as Paraguay. In Brazil it is fairly common, 

 but it is much scarcer in Paraguay, while in Peru it is rare. It occurs in Tobago 

 and Trinidad, but is unknown to the westward of the Andes. In the highlands of 

 Ecuador, at elevations of from six thousand to ten thousand feet, it is represented 

 by Taczanowski's paca (0. tacza non-ski i), distinguished by its inferior size, and the 

 difference in the form of the skull, as well as in coloration. 



vol. in. — 12 



