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VERTEBRATA. 
Darwin furnishes ns with the following account : " N'ear Buenos Ayres these animals are ex- 
ceedingly common. Their most favorite resort appears to be those parts of the plain which, 
during one half of the year, are covered with great thistles to the exclusion of other plants. 
The Guachos affirm that it lives on roots, which, from the great strength of its gnawing teeth 
and the kind of localities frequented by it, seems probable. As in the case of the rabbit, a few 
holes are commonly placed together. In the evening the Viscachas come out in numbers, and 
there quietly sit on their haunches. They are at such times very tame, and a man on horseback 
passing by seems only to present an object for their grave contemplation. They do not wander 
far from their burrows. They run very awkwardly, and when hurrying out of danger, from their 
elevated tails and short front-legs, much resemble great rats. Their flesh, when cooked, is very 
white and good, but it is seldom used. The Viscacha has one very singular habit, namely, drag- 
ging every hard object to the mouth of its burrow. Around each group of holes many bones 
of cattle, stones, thistle-stalks, hard clumps of earth, dry dung, &c., are collected into a heap, 
which frequently amounts to as much as a wheelbarrow would contain. I was credibly informed 
that a gentleman, when riding in a dark night, dropped his watch ; ho returned in the morning, 
and by searching in the neighborhood of every Viscacha hole on the line of road, as he expected 
soon found it. This habit of picking up whatever may be lying on the ground anywhere near 
its habitation must cost much trouble. For what purpose it is done I am quite unable to form 
even the most remote conjecture; it cannot be for defense, because the rubbish is chiefly placed 
above the mouth of the burrow, which enters the ground at a very small inclination." 
cutiee's lagotis. 
Genus LAGOTIS : Lagotis. — Of this there are two known species. Cuvier's Lagotis, L. Cuvieri, 
resembles the preceding, but the body is more slender, the ears longer, and the tail much larger. Its 
general appearance reminds one of the hare. The body above is yellow, with a faint tinge of 
green, in parts slightly mottled with black ; below it is a golden yellow, with a faint reddish 
wash ; the mustaches are black. The fur is exceedingly fine and soft to the touch, and the 
Indians make blankets and mantles of it. The tail is carried stretched out, and its joints are 
slender and scaly. The flesh is eaten by the Indians. It lives in rocky and stony places, feeds 
on herbs and shrubs, and digs burrows with two flats or stories, one above the other. It appears 
that this is also sometimes called Viscacha. It is very abundant on the western slopes of the 
Andes, from latitude 18° to 30° south. 
The Lagotis pallijyes is found in the rocky valleys of Chili. To these two species, Mr. Gay 
adds a third, L. criniger ; but whether it is in fact a distinct species, is not determined. 
Genus CHINCHILLA : Chinchilla. — Lichtenstein gives this the generic name of Euryotis. 
