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Dassie
Related Category: Vertebrate Zoology
see hyrax.
More on Dassie
Hyrax - name for rabbit-sized mammals of Africa and SW Asia comprising the family Procavidae.
Cape hyrax, Dassie
Procavia capensis
A small African mammal which looks like a rodent, but is actually a member of the Afrotheria - related to elephants, sea cows, tenrecs, elephant shrews and the aardvark.
At the Cape they are known to the Dutch as Bass (badger), which has been anglicized into "dassie." As regards the recent forms, the dentition in the fully adult animal consists only of incisors and cheek-teeth, the formula being i. 2, c., p. 4 i m.
The elephants, the hyrax or klipdassie, the dugong Dugong dugon and the manatee Trichechus spp, shared a common pig-like ancestor, Moeritherium some 60 million years ago.
Mammals that live in the same habitat are: steenbok, springbok, oryx, kudu, Dassie Rat, Chacma Baboon, rock dassie, klipspringer and ostrich.
They are also known as the Rock Dassie or the Rock Rabbit, due to their rodent-like appearance but despite this, they are thought to be most closely related to much larger animals including the Elephant and the Manatee.
The hyrax, also called rock rabbit or dassie, is a small furry mammal. It looks like a robust, oversized guinea pig, or a rabbit with rounded ears and no tail.
Family Petromuridae: Dassie Rat
Family Thryonomyidae: cane rats
Family Erethizontidae: New World porcupines
Family Chinchillidae: chinchillas, viscachias
Family Dinomyidae: Paracana
Family Caviidae: cavies, guinea pigs, Patagonian Hare ...
In Namibia, leopards are known to prey on kudu calves, gemsbok calves, steenbok, duiker, game birds, dassies, baboons bat eared foxes and even cheetahs and any other abundant prey in the area.
 See also: Hyrax, Elephant, Rabbit, Manatee, Rat
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