Dasyproctidae is a family of large

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

rodent Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...

s, comprising the

agouti The agouti (, ) or common agouti is any of several rodent species of the genus ''Dasyprocta''. They are native to Middle America, northern and central South America, and the southern Lesser Antilles. Some species have also been introduced else ...

s and

acouchi The acouchis (genus ''Myoprocta'') are rodents belonging to the family Dasyproctidae from the Amazon basin. They are generally smaller than agoutis and have very short tails (5 to 7 cm), while agoutis lack tails. For this reason the acouchis ...

s. Their fur is a reddish or dark colour above, with a paler underside. They are herbivorous, often feeding on ripe

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

that falls from trees. They live in burrows, and, like

squirrel Squirrels are members of the family Sciuridae, a family that includes small or medium-size rodents. The squirrel family includes tree squirrels, ground squirrels (including chipmunks and prairie dogs, among others), and flying squirrels. Squ ...

s, will bury some of their food for later use. Dasyproctids exist in Central and South America, which are the tropical parts of the New World. The fossil record of this family can be traced back to the Late Oligocene (

Deseadan The Deseadan ( es, Deseadense) age is a period of geologic time (29.0–21.0 Ma) within the Oligocene epoch of the Paleogene to the Early Miocene epoch of the Neogene, used more specifically within the SALMA classification of South America. It fo ...

in the SALMA classification). As with all rodents, members of this family have incisors, pre-molars, and molars, but no canines. The cheek teeth are hypsodont and flat-crowned.

Classification

Fossil taxa follow McKenna and Bell, with modifications following Kramarz. * Family Dasyproctidae ** Genus †'' Alloiomys'' ** Genus †'' Australoprocta'' ** Genus †'' Branisamys'' ** Genus †''

Incamys ''Incamys'' is an extinct genus of chinchillid rodent that lived during the Late Oligocene ( Deseadan) in what is now South America. Fossils of this genus have been found in the Salla Formation of Bolivia and the Agua de la Piedra and Sarmiento ...

'' ** Genus †'' Neoreomys'' ** Genus †'' Megastus'' ** Genus †'' Palmiramys'' ** Genus '' Dasyprocta'' ***

Azara's agouti Azara's agouti (''Dasyprocta azarae'') is an agouti species from the family Dasyproctidae. Found in Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina, it is named after Spanish naturalist Félix de Azara Félix Manuel de Azara y Perera (18 May 1746 – 20 Octo ...

, ''D. azarae'' *** Coiban agouti, ''D. coibae'' *** Crested agouti, ''D. cristata'' *** Black agouti, ''D. fuliginosa'' *** Orinoco agouti, ''D. guamara'' ***

Kalinowski's agouti Kalinowski's agouti (''Dasyprocta kalinowskii'') is a species of rodent in the family Dasyproctidae. It is endemic to southeast Peru. It occurs at elevations of up to asl. It is threatened by habitat loss Habitat destruction (also termed h ...

, ''D. kalinowskii'' *** Red-rumped agouti, ''D. leporina'' ***

Mexican agouti The Mexican agouti (''Dasyprocta mexicana''), also known as the Mexican black agouti, is a species of rodent in the family Dasyproctidae. It is native to lowland evergreen forest and second growth in southern Mexico (Veracruz, Oaxaca, Chiapas an ...

, ''D. mexicana'' *** Black-rumped agouti, ''D. prymnolopha'' ***

Central American agouti The Central American agouti (''Dasyprocta punctata'') is a species of agouti from the family Dasyproctidae. The main portion of its range is from Chiapas and the Yucatan Peninsula (southern Mexico), through Central America, to northwestern Ecuad ...

, ''D. punctata'' ***

Ruatan Island agouti The Ruatan Island agouti (''Dasyprocta ruatanica''), also called the Roatán Island agouti, is a species of agouti in the family Dasyproctidae. Distribution It is endemic to the island of Roatán, off the north coast of Honduras. Taxonomy Ther ...

, ''D. ruatanica'' ** Genus '' Myoprocta'' *** Green acouchi, ''M. pratti'' *** Red acouchi, ''M. acouchy'' The

paca A paca is a member of the genus ''Cuniculus'' of ground-dwelling, herbivorous rodents in South and Central America. It is the only genus in the family Cuniculidae. Pacas are large rodents with dots and stripes on their sides, short ears, and ...

s (genus ''Cuniculus'') are placed by some authorities in Dasyproctidae, but molecular studies have demonstrated they do not form a monophyletic group.

References

External links

Central American agouti at Smithsonian

Dasyproctidae at Animaldiversity.org

2014 - Figueira et al. - Carrion consumption by Dasyprocta leporina (Rodentia: Dasyproctidae) and a review of meat use by agoutis
{{Taxonbar, from=Q267132 Hystricognath rodents Rodent families Extant Chattian first appearances Mammals described in 1825