Cuniculus paca (Linnaeus, 1766)

Fonda, Federica, Vezzani, Liam, Mena Aguilar, Luis Ángel, Venegas-Elizondo, Carlos Andrés, Bolaños Brenes, Alexander, Lopez, Dayron Manuel, Romeo, Giuseppe, Sonetti, Dario & Dal Zotto, Matteo, 2025, Mammal diversity and tourism influence in an under-investigated region of Costa Rica, ZooKeys 1260, pp. 37-74 : 37-74

Cuniculus paca (Linnaeus, 1766)

Material examined.

Costa Rica • Puntarenas Province, Karen Mogensen Wildlife Refuge ; 09°52'11"N, 085°03'29"W; 294 m alt.; 20.01.2018; direct observation .

Identification.

The paca is the largest rodent of Central America, reaching a head and body length of more than 700 mm ( Pérez 1992), and a body mass of 6–10 kg. The ears and tail are short, the fur is reddish-brown with rounded, whitish spots in longitudinal lines on the sides of the body. It is similar to Dasyprocta punctata but can be distinguished by its larger size and the presence of white spotting ( Wainwright 2007). Relatively common in the study area mostly in moist forested habitats.