The caviidae family includes 6 genera with 20 species. Modern living representatives of the Caviidae include the house marten, Patagonian mara, Brazilian marten, and great capybara, among others.
Cavies usually reach a small size. The house peacock grows 20-30 cm, the Patagonian mara is much larger - 50-60 cm and the largest is the meter-long great capybara - the largest of the rodents. Extinct genera were even larger.
Capricorns live in South America, from Venezuela to Argentina.
They inhabit a variety of environments. Some prefer open, grassy areas (like the kava), others live in mountainous areas, deftly climbing on rocks or trees (like the moko), while others lead an earth-and-water lifestyle, like the capybara.
They feed on plant foods.
