Geographic Range
Agouti taczanowskii
is found in the higher elevation mountain ranges of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and
Venezuela.
- Biogeographic Regions
- neotropical
Habitat
Mountain pacas live at elevations of 2000 to 3500 meters with most individuals found
between 2000 and 3050 meters. They are terrestrial but live near rivers or swampy
areas in dense forest thickets. They often use water to escape when in danger as they
are good swimmers. They are nocturnal and spend the daytime in underground burrows
they construct which are up to 5 meters deep.
- Habitat Regions
- temperate
- terrestrial
- Wetlands
- swamp
- Other Habitat Features
- agricultural
- riparian
Physical Description
Mountain pacas are large rodents, resembling large
guinea pigs
with an average weight of 9 kg and a length of 70 cm. Females are slightly smaller
than males. They have short legs and rotund bodies with large heads and eyes. The
skull is easily recognized, with an exceptionally large zygomatic arch. Pelage is
red-brown to chocolate brown with two to seven white spots on the flanks; the young
are born with this pelage as well. Mountain pacas have similar pelage to their close
relative,
Agouti paca
, but with a denser undercoat to withstand the colder temperatures in the mountains.
- Other Physical Features
- endothermic
- homoiothermic
- bilateral symmetry
- Sexual Dimorphism
- male larger
Reproduction
Mountain pacas have a monogamous mating system, although males and females live alone.
Mates live in separate dens which are normally in close proximity. Other mating behaviors
are unknown.
- Mating System
- monogamous
Mountain paca reproduction is not well studied, but is thought to be like that of
Agouti paca
(pacas) and much of the information below is based om that species. Pacas breed year
round with a gestation period of around 118 days, and can give birth to two litters
per year. A single offspring is usually produced with twins being rare. Young weigh
450 to 800g at birth, growing quickly to maturity at age of 1. Pacas are weaned at
about 3 months old and females experience a post-partum estrous.
- Key Reproductive Features
- iteroparous
- gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
- sexual
- viviparous
- post-partum estrous
Like other mammals, female mountain pacas invest heavily in their offspring through
gestation, lactation, and other care of the young. Male parental investment is not
known in mountain pacas.
- Parental Investment
- precocial
-
pre-fertilization
- provisioning
-
protecting
- female
-
pre-hatching/birth
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
-
pre-weaning/fledging
-
provisioning
- female
-
protecting
- female
-
provisioning
Lifespan/Longevity
There is little data on wild lifespan of mountain pacas and there are few in captivity.
A lifespan of 12.5 years was recorded in the wild.
Behavior
Mountain pacas are nocturnal and solitary animals. They live in burrows they construct
in clay soils along river banks. Mountain pacas are found most frequently in dense
forest, but are sometimes seen in open areas. Because of their size, they make a lot
of noise when walking and are easily found by predators.
Home Range
Mountain pacas have small home ranges which usually overlap with the home range of
their mate. Mated pairs in the closely related species
Agouti paca
will jointly defend their home ranges.
Communication and Perception
Mountain pacas are not highly social animals and few vocalizations are known. They
sometimes bark and grind their teeth. Like most mammals, they probably use chemical
cues in communication.
Food Habits
Mountain pacas are opportunistic frugivores. They feed primarily on fruits and nuts,
sometimes eating small grains. They often bring their food to a central midden in
their large, fur-lined cheek pouches. Mountain pacas are important seed dispersal
agents of many fruiting tree species.
- Plant Foods
- leaves
- seeds, grains, and nuts
- fruit
- Foraging Behavior
- stores or caches food
Predation
Mountain pacas avoid predation by being nocturnal and cryptically colored. Their brown,
spotted pelage allows them to blend in with the forest undergrowth. They are also
good swimmers and usually escape to the water or their den when being chased by a
predator.
- Anti-predator Adaptations
- cryptic
Ecosystem Roles
Mountain pacas are important seed dispersers in their forested habitats. They prey
mainly on fruit and nuts and will carry them in their cheek pouches to other locations
where they then eat or drop them, causing dispersal of the plant seed.
- Ecosystem Impact
- disperses seeds
Economic Importance for Humans: Positive
Mountain pacas are hunted extensively for food. Hunts occur at night with spotlights
and with dogs by day. The meat is veal-like and fetches high market prices. Paca farms
have been suggested as a sustainable and economically viable business.
- Positive Impacts
- food
Economic Importance for Humans: Negative
Mountain pacas cause few problems for humans. They have been known to cause some crop
damage to fruit and nut crops in some areas.
- Negative Impacts
- crop pest
Conservation Status
Mountain pacas are listed as "low risk" by the IUCN. In some areas they are rare because
of hunting pressures, in other areas populations are high, up to 90 per square km.
Reserves protect mountain pacas from hunting in some areas.
Additional Links
Contributors
Tanya Dewey (editor), Animal Diversity Web.
Cody Krause (author), University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Chris Yahnke (editor, instructor), University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
- Neotropical
-
living in the southern part of the New World. In other words, Central and South America.
- native range
-
the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic.
- temperate
-
that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle).
- terrestrial
-
Living on the ground.
- forest
-
forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality.
- mountains
-
This terrestrial biome includes summits of high mountains, either without vegetation or covered by low, tundra-like vegetation.
- swamp
-
a wetland area that may be permanently or intermittently covered in water, often dominated by woody vegetation.
- agricultural
-
living in landscapes dominated by human agriculture.
- riparian
-
Referring to something living or located adjacent to a waterbody (usually, but not always, a river or stream).
- endothermic
-
animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds.
- bilateral symmetry
-
having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria.
- monogamous
-
Having one mate at a time.
- iteroparous
-
offspring are produced in more than one group (litters, clutches, etc.) and across multiple seasons (or other periods hospitable to reproduction). Iteroparous animals must, by definition, survive over multiple seasons (or periodic condition changes).
- sexual
-
reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female
- viviparous
-
reproduction in which fertilization and development take place within the female body and the developing embryo derives nourishment from the female.
- young precocial
-
young are relatively well-developed when born
- fossorial
-
Referring to a burrowing life-style or behavior, specialized for digging or burrowing.
- nocturnal
-
active during the night
- motile
-
having the capacity to move from one place to another.
- sedentary
-
remains in the same area
- solitary
-
lives alone
- territorial
-
defends an area within the home range, occupied by a single animals or group of animals of the same species and held through overt defense, display, or advertisement
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- visual
-
uses sight to communicate
- tactile
-
uses touch to communicate
- acoustic
-
uses sound to communicate
- chemical
-
uses smells or other chemicals to communicate
- stores or caches food
-
places a food item in a special place to be eaten later. Also called "hoarding"
- cryptic
-
having markings, coloration, shapes, or other features that cause an animal to be camouflaged in its natural environment; being difficult to see or otherwise detect.
- food
-
A substance that provides both nutrients and energy to a living thing.
- herbivore
-
An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants.
- frugivore
-
an animal that mainly eats fruit
- granivore
-
an animal that mainly eats seeds
References
Donegan, T., B. Huertas, E. Briceno, J. Arias, I. Camargo, M. Donegan. 2004. "Threatened Species of Serrania de los Yariguies Expedition" (On-line). Colombian EBA Project. Accessed October 17, 2006 at http://www.proaves.org/IMG/pdf/Yariguies_Report_English-2.pdf .
Eisenberg, J., K. Redford. 1992. Mammals of the Neotropics, The Central Neotropics Volume 3 . Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Emmons, L. 1990. Neotropical Rainforest Mammals . Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
IUCN, 2006. "Agouti taczanowskii" (On-line). International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Accessed October 17, 2006 at http://www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/700/all .
Lorentsen, R. 2005. "Mountain paca" (On-line image). European studbook programmes. Accessed October 17, 2006 at http://www.quantum-conservation.org/ESB/MOUNTAIN%20PACA.html .
Nowak, R. 1999. Walkers Mammals of the World Volume 2 . John Hopkins Univeristy Press: Johns Hopkins.
Ojasti, J. 1996. "Rodents" (On-line). Wildlife Utilization in Latin America: Current Situation and Prospects for Sustainable Management. (FAO Conservation Guide - 25). Accessed October 11, 2006 at http://www.fao.org/docrep/T0750E/t0750e0o.htm .
The National Academies Press, 1991. "Paca" (On-line). Microlivestock: Little-Known Small Animals with a Promising Economic Future. Accessed October 11, 2006 at http://fermat.nap.edu/books/030904295X/html/263.html .