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Designed by Paul Smith 2006. This website is copyrighted by law.
Material contained herewith may not be used without the prior written permission of FAUNA Paraguay.
Material on this page was provided by Paul Smith and Hugo del Castillo and is used with their permission.
CONOVER´S TUCO-TUCO Ctenomys conoveri
Tuco-Tucos are large, sociable, subterranean rodents that form massive underground colonies. They are rarely encountered above ground but their strange grunting calls can usually be heard coming from deep inside their "cities" - the name Tuco-Tuco is an attempt to put this call into words! Tuco-Tucos look like a cross between a rat and a beaver, their most outstanding feature being the huge, orange teeth. In common with most subterranean species they have small eyes and are almost blind. In fact when above ground they are almost defenceless (hence the reason they are rarely seen!), but don´t get complacent, those teeth can give you a vicious bite!
Click on the images to enlarge them.
FIGURE 1 - (FPMAM803PH) Adult, PN Tte Enciso, Departamento Boquerón (Hugo del Castillo November 2008).
FIGURE 2 - (FPMAM804PH) Adult, Central Chaco (Paul Smith July 2006).
FIGURE 3 - (FPMAM805PH) Head detail of same individual (Paul Smith July 2006).
FIGURE 4 - (FPMAM942PH) Adult, Loma Plata, Departamento Boquerón (Paul Smith April 2011).
FIGURE 5 - (FPMAM806PH) Burrows, Laguna Capitán, Cuenca Upper Yacaré Sur (Paul Smith July 2006).
VIDEO - (FPMAM943VI) Adult, Loma Plata, Departamento Boquerón (Paul Smith April 2011).
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