6 
MEXICAN PORCUPINE. 
bristles. Its feet are divided into four toes each, 
with very long ciaws, and a great protuberance on 
the place of the thumb. Its tail is eighteen 
inches long, slender and taper towards the end ; 
for the last ten inches it is almost naked, having 
only a few hairs upon it ; but for that space, it 
lias a strong prehensile quality. The animal is 
about a foot long from the nose to the tip of the 
tail. 
It inhabits Mexico and Brasil ; it lives in the 
woods, and preys, not only ©n fruits, but also on 
birds ; it sleeps by day in the hollow of trees or 
beneath their roots, and preys by night ; and gene- 
rally makes a noise with its nostrils, as if out of 
breath ; it grunts also like a hog. It climbs 
trees, but very slowly ; in descending, for fear ot 
falling, it twists its tail round the branches ; it 
spends no more arrows in darting its quills than 
the rest ; it grows very fat ; and its flesh is said 
to be very white and good. They may be tamed. 
Piso says there is a greater and a lesser kind o! 
this species. 
I 
Mexican porcupine. 
The Mexican porcupine is of a dusky colour, 
with long bristles intermixed with its fur. Its 
spines are three inches long, slender, and varied 
with white and yellow ; but they are scarcely ap- 
parent, except on the tail, which is thicker and 
shorter than that of the preceding species ; from 
the middle to the end it is free from spines. It 
grow s to the size of a middle sized dog. It inha- 
bits the mountains of Mexico, lives on the summer 
fruits, and may easily be made tame. The Indians 
pulverize the quills, and say they are very effica- 
cious as a remedy for the gravel ; and that applied 
whole to the forehead, they will relieve the most 
