# Brazilian Guinea Pig

*Cavia aperea*

Unlike many rodents that give birth to helpless young, newborn Brazilian guinea pigs are fully furred, open their eyes immediately, and can run within hours of birth.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Mammalia › Rodentia › Caviidae › Cavia
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Open savannas, grasslands, marshes, and agricultural margins with dense vegetative cover
- **Diet:** Herbivorous, feeding primarily on grasses, herbs, leaves, seeds, and the bark of small shrubs
- **Range:** Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay
- **Size:** 20–28 cm in length, weighing 500–700 g
- **Lifespan:** 3–5 years in the wild, up to 8 years in captivity
- **Active:** crepuscular
- **Threats:** Habitat loss from intensive agriculture, predation by feral dogs and cats, and vehicular traffic
- **Safe to approach?:** Brazilian guinea pigs are completely harmless and very skittish, fleeing into dense brush when approached. Maintain a respectful distance to avoid causing stress. They rarely bite unless caught and handled; if bitten, wash the wound thoroughly with soap and water to prevent bacterial infection.

## About

The Brazilian guinea pig ( Cavia aperea ) ( preá in Portuguese) is a guinea pig species found in Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela.

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/7601a676-f8be-4c8c-836a-f8f27ab0f49e
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/43813
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cavia aperea
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/57093876/medium.jpg (Fernando Sessegolo, CC0, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.