Paca
Sign in to saveA paca (from Tupí paka) 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 barely visible tails. Pacas are eaten by people in Belize, where they are known as "gibnut" and, having been served to Queen Elizabeth II, "the royal rat". In the Amazon basin they are known as "majás". In Guyanese English, it is known as labba from Arawak. In Trinidad they are known as lappe and are highly prized as game animals; the cooked m
Article
11 sectionsContents
- Evolutionary background
- Description
- Behavior
- Feeding
- Reproduction
- Distribution and habitat
- Species
- Potential use by humans
- References
- Sources
- External links
A paca (from Tupí paka) 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 barely visible tails. Pacas are eaten by people in Belize, where they are known as "gibnut" and, having been served to Queen Elizabeth II, "the royal rat". In the Amazon basin they are known as "majás". In Guyanese English, it is known as labba from Arawak. In Trinidad they are known as lappe and are highly prized as game animals; the cooked meat being considered quite a delicacy among wildmeat enthusiasts.
==Evolutionary background== Pacas originated in South America and are one of the few mammal species that successfully emigrated to North America after the Great American Interchange . They were formerly grouped with the agoutis in the family Dasyproctidae, subfamily Agoutinae, but were given full family status because they differ in the number of toes, the shape of the skull, and coat patterning.