AGUTIS AND PA CAS. 
177 
Aguchi. 
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 
the aguchi (D. 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 by the title of paca 
Facas. .... J L 
(Codogenys paca) is readily 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 greatly 
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 fine 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 (C. taczanowskii), distinguished by its inferior size, and the 
difference in the form of the skull, as well as in coloration. 
SKULL OF PACA. 
VOL. III.—12 
