Caviidae

Belongs within: Cavioidea.

The Caviidae include the cavies (Caviinae) and the maras or Patagonian hares (Dolichotis). The best known species is the guinea pig Cavia porcellus, originally domesticated for food in South America but widely kept around the world as a pet.

Characters (from Nowak 1999): Head and body length 200-750 mm, tail vestigial. Dental formula i1/1 c0/0 p1/1 m3/3; incisors short; tooth rows tending to converge anteriorly; cheek teeth rootless with simple pattern of two prisms having sharp folds and angular projections. Four digits on fore foot, three on hind foot.

Caviidae
    |  i. s.: Prodolichotis Kraglievich 1932SM93
    |         Neoprocavia Ameghino 1889SM93
    |--+--Dolichotis [Dolichotinae]FS15
    |  |    |--D. majorO05
    |  |    |--D. patagonumFS15
    |  |    `--D. salinicolaIT07
    |  `--+--KerodonFS15
    |     |    |--K. acrobataFS15
    |     |    `--K. rupestrisIT07
    |     `--+--Neochoerus aesopiFS15
    |        `--HydrochoeridaeMJ11
    |             |--Cardiatherium Ameghino 1883SM93
    |             |--Procardiatherium Ameghino 1885SM93
    |             `--HydrochoerusFS15
    |                  |--H. giganteusO05
    |                  |--H. hydrochaerisIT07
    |                  `--H. isthmiusFS15
    `--CaviinaeB74
         |--GaleaFS15
         |    |--G. flavidensIT07
         |    |--G. monasteriensisFS15
         |    |--G. musteloidesB74
         |    `--G. spixiiIT07
         `--+--MicrocaviaFS15
            |    |--M. australisFS15
            |    `--+--M. niataFS15
            |       `--M. shiptoniFS15
            `--CaviaFS15
                 |  i. s.: C. boliviensisT01
                 |           |--C. b. boliviensisT01
                 |           |--C. b. leucoblepharaT01
                 |           `--C. b. littoralis Thomas 1901T01
                 |         C. cobayaD37
                 |--C. magnaFS15
                 `--+--+--C. intermediaFS15
                    |  `--C. tschudiiFS15
                    `--+--C. fulgidaFS15
                       `--+--C. aperea Erxleben 1777FS15, GC-BG04
                          `--C. porcellus (Linnaeus 1758)GC-BG04

Inorganic: Cavia porcellus minilorientalis Okamura 1987O87

*Type species of generic name indicated

References

[B74] Bugge, J. 1974. The cephalic arterial system in insectivores, primates, rodents and lagomorphs, with special reference to the systematic classification. Acta Anatomica 87 (Suppl 62): 1–160.

[D37] Dobzhansky, T. 1937. Genetics and the Origin of Species. Columbia University Press: New York.

[FS15] Faurby, S., & J.-C. Svenning. 2015. A species-level phylogeny of all extant and late Quaternary extinct mammals using a novel heuristic-hierarchical Bayesian approach. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 84: 14–26.

[GC-BG04] Gentry, A., J. Clutton-Brock & C. P. Groves. 2004. The naming of wild animal species and their domestic derivatives. Journal of Archaeological Science 31: 645–651.

[IT07] Isaac, N. J. B., S. T. Turvey, B. Collen, C. Waterman & J. E. M. Baillie. 2007. Mammals on the EDGE: conservation priorities based on threat and phylogeny. PloS One 2 (3): e296.

[MJ11] Meredith, R. W., J. E. Janečka, J. Gatesy, O. A. Ryder, C. A. Fisher, E. C. Teeling, A. Goodbla, E. Eizirik, T. L. L. Simão, T. Stadler, D. L. Rabosky, R. L. Honeycutt, J. J. Flynn, C. M. Ingram, C. Steiner, T. L. Williams, T. J. Robinson, A. Burk-Herrick, M. Westerman, N. A. Ayoub, M. S. Springer & W. J. Murphy. 2011. Impacts of the Cretaceous terrestrial revolution and KPg extinction on mammal diversification. Science 334: 521–524.

Nowak, R. M. 1999. Walker’s Mammals of the World. JHU Press.

[O87] Okamura, C. 1987. New facts: Homo and all Vertebrata were born simultaneously in the former Paleozoic in Japan. Original Report of the Okamura Fossil Laboratory 15: 347–573.

[O05] Outes, F. F. 1905. Sobre un instrumento paleolítico de Luján (Provincia de Buenos Aires). Anales del Museo Nacional de Buenos Aires, serie 3, 6: 169–173.

[SM93] Stucky, R. K., & M. C. McKenna. 1993. Mammalia. In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 739–771. Chapman & Hall: London.

[T01] Thomas, O. 1901. New South-American Sciuri, Heteromys, Cavia, and Caluromys. Annals and Magazine of Natural History, series 7, 7: 192–196.