The Chacoan mara (''Pediolagus salinicola'') or Chacoan cavy is a relatively 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 sout ...

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 n ...

of the

cavy Caviidae, the cavy family, is composed of rodents native to South America and includes the domestic guinea pig, wild cavies, and the largest living rodent, the capybara. They are found across South America in open areas from moist savanna to tho ...

family. They are a close relative of the better known

Patagonian mara The Patagonian mara (''Dolichotis patagonum'') is a relatively large rodent in the mara genus ''Dolichotis''. It is also known as the Patagonian cavy, Patagonian hare, or dillaby. This herbivorous, somewhat rabbit-like animal is found in open and ...

. The Chacoan mara is the sole member of the genus ''Pediolagus''.

Taxonomy

Until recently ''Pediolagus'' was considered synonymous with ''

Dolichotis ''Dolichotis'' is a genus of the cavy family of rodents. These large relatives of guinea pigs are common in the Patagonian steppes of Argentina, but also live in Paraguay and elsewhere in South America. It contains a single extant species, the Pa ...

'' and the Chacoan mara was a member of that genus. However, a 2020 study by the American Society of Mammalogists found significant difference between the two mara species to warrant resurrecting ''Pediolagus''.

Habitat

The Chacoan mara lives in the South American Chaco, the dry thorny forests and grasslands of

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

, and Bolivia. Maras dig a burrow to sleep in at night.

Ecology

The Chacoan mara eat grasses and other herbage. They will eat nearly any available vegetation. Specifically, they selects forbs, grasses, succulents, and trees in the dry season and grasses in the wet season. Annual forbs are eaten in the wet season as well. Despite the Chaocan cavy's close resemblance and coexistence to the Patagonian mara, they have a broader niche to allow coexistence with its relative. This flexibility is reflected by its subfamily's high diversity, recorded as early as the late Miocene epoch. Chacoan maras live in small groups of up to four animals.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q195350 Cavies Mammals of Argentina Mammals of Bolivia Mammals of Paraguay Mammals described in 1876