Post #14103

Cuban Hutia: Mini-capybaras. Kind, affectionate, but people don’t know about them Admit it, have you always dreamed of a capybara, but is it too big for your home? Well, we have made your dream come true! We found the same kind, sweet and charming animal in a smaller version. I present to you Capybara version 2.0. mini - Cuban hutia. The name, of course, looks like a dirty word. But everything is learned by comparison. And we will compare it with this: the generic name in Latin sounds decent and respectable - Capromys pilorides. But the translation let us down. The name comes from the ancient Greek words “kapros” - pig, boar and “mus” - mouse, rat. Agree, against the backdrop of the “pig mouse”, hutia sounds quite decent. The animal is really very similar to a capybara. The body is squat, the legs are short, the head is heavy, the ears are fleshy. Ideal shape, in a word. Only unlike the largest rodent in the world, the Cuban copy-paste weighs like a small dog - 4-6 kg in weight and 60 cm in length. And the charming appearance is slightly spoiled by the bare tail, covered with sparse bristles, indicating that the hutia belongs to the family of bristly rats. But you can look at the stern less often. Moreover, these animals have such a cute face. The largest Cuban rodents live throughout the archipelago of the same name. Let’s say more: you won’t find Hutiyas anywhere except in Cuba. This is an endemic species that has been registered here since the time of mammoths. And while woolly elephants were freezing their bones in Siberia, these rodents colonized tropical forests on the plains next to ponds. They spend most of their ten-year life on the ground, leisurely walking along the sand and performing ablutions from time to time. Having had their fill, the animals, with the help of their long claws, easily climb to the upper branches of the trees, where they curl up in a cozy ball, basking in the sun and resting. They can also have a snack there. Hutia are herbivores; their main diet, with rare exceptions, is leaves, fruits and tree bark. The first researchers who discovered and described hutiyas called them “rabbit cats.” Hares - because they are rodents. Cats - for the ability to deftly climb trees. Like capybaras, hutias are extremely peaceful animals. They are friends with both other species and relatives. They don’t wage territorial wars and don’t get involved in food disputes. Unless the males make a fuss of each other from time to time because of the females. But this is sacred. Another important thing for Hutia is family. Rodents choose their life partner once and for all. Having found their soulmate, the newlyweds build a nest about a meter in diameter from leaves and twigs right on the ground. Sometimes they occupy empty holes and hollows. After 110-130 days of pregnancy, from 1 to 3 cubs are born, which, as soon as they are born, are already coated, open-eyed and able to move on their own four feet. After wandering a