Paca

A paca is a member of the genus Cuniculus of ground-dwelling, herbivorous rodents in South and Central America. It is the only genus in the family Cuniculidae. They are large rodents with dots and stripes on their sides, short ears, and barely visible tails. They are also known in Belize as "gibnut" or, having been served to Queen Elizabeth II, as "the royal rat". In the Amazon basin they are known as "majás".

The Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama has studied the possibilities of developing the paca as a viable high-priced food supply for the tropics.