Rock cavy The rock cavies belong to the subfamily Caviinae along with the guinea pig, desert cavy, and cuis. Rock cavies are found in dry, rocky areas with low, scrubby vegetation, and they like to reside close to stony mountains and hills. In appearance and habits they closely resemble the unrelated rock hyrax of Africa (an example of convergent evolution). They usually shelter in crevices. They are reportedly seen at day and night, but are most active at dawn or dusk. Animals most active at this time are known as crepuscular. Studies show that there is a direct link between the retina
Southern mountain cavy Southern mountain cavy The southern mountain cavy ("Microcavia australis") is a species of South American rodent in the family Caviidae. Southern mountain cavies are tailless rodents with short, speckled, greyish-yellow fur, fading to pale grey on the underparts. Adults measure around in total length and weigh between . They have large eyes surrounded by a prominent white ring, and small rounded ears. Females have four teats. Southern mountain cavies are largely restricted to Argentina, but may also be found in some neighbouring regions of Chile and Bolivia. They are found across almost the whole of western and southern Argentina, where