VII 
THE BIZCACHA 
131 
Rio Negro, in lat. 41 0 , but not beyond. It cannot, like the 
agouti, subsist on the gravelly and desert plains of Patagonia, 
but prefers a clayey or sandy soil, which produces a different 
and more abundant vegetation. • Near Mendoza, at the foot 
of the Cordillera, it occurs in close neighbourhood with the 
allied alpine species. It is a very curious circumstance in its 
geographical distribution, that it has never been seen, fortunately 
for the inhabitants of Banda Oriental, to the eastward of the 
river Uruguay: yet in this province there are plains which 
appear admirably adapted to its habits. The Uruguay has 
formed an insuperable obstacle to its migration ; although the 
broader barrier of the Parana has been passed, and the bizcacha 
is common in Entre Rios, the province between these two 
great rivers. Near Buenos Ayres these animals are exceedingly 
common. Their most favourite resort appears to be those 
parts of the plain which during one half of the year are 
covered with giant thistles, to the exclusion of other plants. 
The Gauchos affirm that it lives on roots ; which, from the great 
strength of its gnawing teeth, and the kind of places frequented 
by it, seems probable. In the evening the bizcachas come 
out in numbers, and quietly sit at the mouths of their burrows 
on their haunches. At such times they are very tame, and a 
man on horseback passing by seems only to present an object 
for their grave contemplation. They run very awkwardly, 
and when running 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 bizcacha has one very singular habit ; namely, dragging 
every hard object to the mouth of its burrow : around each 
group of holes many bones of cattle, stones, thistle-stalks, hard 
lumps of earth, dry dung, etc., are collected into an irregular 
heap, which frequently amounts to as much as a wheelbarrow 
would contain. I was credibly informed that a gentleman, 
when riding on a dark night, dropped his watch ; he returned 
in the morning, and by searching the neighbourhood of every 
bizcacha hole on the line of road, as he expected, he 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 
