OEDEE OF EODENTIA. 



461 



approacli. They are hunted for the sake of their fur, of which 

 the natives make caps. 



After the Chinchillas comes a group of Rodents analogous to 

 Rats with regard to their shape and size, hut distinguished from 

 the latter by their dental system and the texture of their hair. 

 While Rats have only three pairs of grinders in each jaw, these 

 animals possess four, added to which, their coat is generally more 

 or less sprinkled with diminutive quills. This last characteristic, 

 however, is not a constant attribute. We shall, notwithstanding, 

 apply the denomination of Prickly-haired Rats to all the animals 



'^- .—. 



Fig. 194. — Ctenomys. 



which compose this group, for we shall by this means avoid enter- 

 ing into details of a nomenclature which is both barbarous and 

 diflBcult to remember. 



These Rodents are exclusively natives of the New World, and 

 chiefly belong to South America. They feed on vegetable sub- 

 stances obtained on the surface of the soil. Their tail is long, 

 generally scaly, and sometimes furnished with short hair. Natu- 

 ralists call them the Ctenomys (Fig. 194). 



Beside these Rodents are ranked the Capromys, which have 

 the same habits, but are as large as Rabbits. The Capromys are 

 inhabitants of Cuba ; they can climb with ease, and will readily 

 ascend trees. Their food consists of leguminous fruits and aromatic 



