890 
YEETEBRATA. 
THE PATAGONIAN CAVT. 
viscacha for a retreat. It wanders at times to great distances from its home ; on these occasions, 
two or three are usually seen together. The animal in its mode of running greatly resembles the 
rabbit, but though its limbs are long it does not run very fast; it sometimes, though seldom, 
squats after the manner of the hare, is very shy and watchful, and feeds by day. The eyes, like 
those of the Kangaroos, are defended from the direct rays of the sun by well-developed eye-lashes, 
which is not the case with ordinary cavies. It generally produces two young at a birth, and bring-s 
forth in its burrow; its flesh is white when cooked, but rather dry and tasteless. The long legs 
and rather long erect ears, combined with the general form of the head, and the short recurved 
tail, have caused this animal to be very generally mistaken for a hare by casual observers. Its 
fur is soft, and its color brown on the back and fawn on the sides. For size it surpasses the com- 
mon hare, full-grown individuals weighing from twenty to thirty pounds, and indeed the Patago- 
nian Cavy must rank among the largest of the rodent tribe, though surpassed by its aquatic con- 
gener, the capybara. 
It is found in Patagonia on the east coast, from latitude Sl° to 48° south. Darwin says it "is 
found only where the country has a desert character. 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 in a 
straight line over the gravelly plains thinly clothed by a few thorny bushes and a withered 
herbage." 
Genus KERODON : Kerodon. — Of this there is a single species, the Rock Cavy, K. rupestris, 
the Kerodon Moco of F. Cuvier. In this animal the fur is soft, its general hue gray, tinted with 
rufous on the hinder part of the back; throat white, chest whitish; abdomen white, suflfused with 
pale ocherous yellow. It inhabits the interior of Brazil, and is confined to rocky districts, where 
it seeks its retreat in holes among the fragments of the rocks. *It is frequently met with at Bel- 
monte, Rio Pardo, and Rio de St. Francisco, being found near the rivers, but always in the higher 
parts of their course. Its flesh is said to be well-flavored, on which account it is sought by the 
Indians, to whom it is known by the name of HoM ; by the Portuguese it is called MoM. It is 
superior in size to most other ca\nes, stands higher on its legs, and is remarkable in its group for 
the comparative softness of its fur, and the structure of the nails of its toes. 
Genus CAVIA : Cavia^ or COB AYE, according to Gervais. — Of this there are several species, 
all called Cavies, the most noted of which is the Restless Cayt, C. aperea; the Cochon d'lnde 
