''Dolichotis'' is a genus 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 t ...

family of rodents. These large relatives of

guinea pig The guinea pig or domestic guinea pig (''Cavia porcellus''), also known as the cavy or domestic cavy ( ), is a species of rodent belonging to the genus ''Cavia'', family Caviidae. Animal fancy, Breeders tend to use the name "cavy" for the ani ...

s are common in the

Patagonia Patagonia () is a geographical region that includes parts of Argentina and Chile at the southern end of South America. The region includes the southern section of the Andes mountain chain with lakes, fjords, temperate rainforests, and glaciers ...

n steppes of

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, but also live in

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

and elsewhere in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. It contains a single extant species, the

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 or Patagonian hare. This herbivorous, somewhat rabbit-like animal is found in open and semiopen ...

, which is one of the largest

rodents 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 ...

in the world after the two species each of

capybara The capybara or greater capybara (''Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris'') is the largest living rodent, native to South America. It is a member of the genus '' Hydrochoerus''. The only other extant member is the lesser capybara (''Hydrochoerus isthmi ...

s and

beaver Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...

s, and the large species of

porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp Spine (zoology), spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two Family (biology), families of animals: the Old World porcupines of the family Hystricidae, and the New ...

s, reaching about in height. The

Chacoan mara The Chacoan mara (''Pediolagus salinicola'') or Chacoan cavy is a relatively large South American rodent of the cavy family. They are a close relative of the better known Patagonian mara. The Chacoan mara is the sole member of the genus ''Pediola ...

has and sometimes still is also considered a member of this genus. However, a 2020 study by the

American Society of Mammalogists The American Society of Mammalogists (ASM) was founded in 1919. Its primary purpose is to encourage the study of mammal A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the Class (biology), class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence ...

found significant difference between the two mara species to warrant placing it in the genus '' Pediolagus''.

Etymology

''Dolichotis'' means "long-eared", from Ancient Greek "δολιχός" (dolikhos) meaning "long" and "οὖς" (ous) meaning "ear".

Species

One extant and two extinct species of in this genus are recognized: ;Fossil species * †''D. intermedia'' * †''D. platycephala'' Fossils are known from Argentina: *

Montehermosan The Montehermosan age is a period of geologic time (6.8–4.0 Mya (unit), Ma) within the Miocene and Pliocene epochs of the Neogene used more specifically with South American Land Mammal Ages. It follows the Huayquerian and precedes the Chapadmalal ...

** Andalhuala Formation *

Huayquerian The Huayquerian () age is a period of geologic time (9.0–6.8 Ma) within the Late Miocene epoch of the Neogene, used more specifically within the SALMA classification. It follows the Chasicoan and precedes the Montehermosan age. Etymology T ...

** Chiquimil Formation *

Chapadmalalan The Chapadmalalan age is a period of geologic time (4.0–3.0 Ma) within the Pliocene epoch of the Neogene used more specifically with South American Land Mammal Ages. It follows the Montehermosan and precedes the Uquian age. Fossil content ...

** Barranca de los Lobos Formation ** San Andrés Formation *

Ensenadan The Ensenadan age is a period of geologic time (1.2–0.8 Ma) within the Early Pleistocene epoch of the Quaternary used more specifically with South American Land Mammal Ages. It follows the Uquian and precedes the Lujanian The Lujanian age is a ...

** Vorohué Formation ** Yupoí Formation *

Lujanian The Lujanian age is a South American land mammal age within the Pleistocene and Holocene epochs of the Neogene, from 0.8–0.011 Mya (unit), Ma or 800–11 tya (unit), tya. It follows the Ensenadan. The age is usually divided into the middle Pleist ...

Luján Formation Luján or Luxan, a common Spanish people, Spanish surname and given name, may refer to: People Politics *The List of United States political families (L)#The Lujans, Lujan political family of New Mexico: **Eugene D. Lujan (1887–1980), justice of ...

Gallery

File:Patagonian Cavy.jpg, Patagonian mara at the Wildlife Ranch in

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, Texas File:Patagonian Cavies, Melbourne Zoo, Melbourne.jpg, A pair of Patagonian maras at the

Melbourne Zoo Melbourne Zoo is a zoo in Melbourne, Australia. It is located within Royal Park, Melbourne, Royal Park in Parkville, Victoria, Parkville, approximately north of the centre of Melbourne. It is the primary zoo serving Melbourne. As of 2021, the ...

File:Dolichotis patagonum closeup.jpg, Close-up of a Patagonian mara File:A mara at tropical wings.JPG, Mara at

Tropical Wings The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q838738 Cavies Extant Miocene first appearances Articles containing video clips Rodent genera Taxa named by Anselme Gaëtan Desmarest Mammal genera with one living species