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PACA

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Originally appearing in Volume V20, Page 431 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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PACA , the Brazilian name for a large, heavily-built, See also:

short-tailed rodent mammal, easily recognized by its spotted See also:fur. This rodent, Coelogenys (or See also:Agouti) paca, together with one or two other tropical See also:American See also:species, represents a genus near akin to the agoutis and included in the See also:family Caviidae. Pacas may be distinguished from agoutis by their heavier and more compact build, the See also:longitudinal rows of See also:light spots on the fur, the five-toed See also:hind-feet, and the See also:peculiar structure of the See also:skull, in which the cheek-bones are See also:expanded to See also:form large, capsules on the sides of the See also:face, each enclosing a cavity opening on the See also:side of the cheek. Their habits are very similar to those of agoutis, but when pursued they invariably take to the See also:water. The See also:young, of which seldom more than one is produced at a See also:birth, remain in the burrows for several months. The flesh is eaten in See also:Brazil. See also:Males may be distinguished from See also:females by the skull, in which the See also:outer See also:surface of the cheek-bones is roughened in the former and smooth in the latter See also:sex. The paca-rana (Dinomys branicki), from the See also:highlands of See also:Peru, differs, among other features, by its well-See also:developed tail and the arrangement of the Spots.

End of Article: PACA

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