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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the mammal. For other uses, see Porcupine (disambiguation).

Porcupine

North American porcupine

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia

Order: Rodentia

Suborder: Hystricomorpha

Infraorder: Hystricognathi

Groups included

 Hystricidae (Old
World porcupines)
 Erethizontidae (Ne
w World
porcupines)
Cladistically included but
traditionally excluded taxa
 †Bathyergoididae
 Bathyergidae
 †Myophiomyidae
 †Diamantomyidae
 †Phiomyidae
 †Kenyamyidae
 Petromuridae
 Thryonomyidae
 Chinchillidae
 †Neoepiblemidae
 Dinomyidae
 †Cephalomyidae
 †Eocardiidae
 Caviidae
 Dasyproctidae
 Cuniculidae
 Ctenomyidae
  Octodontidae
 Abrocomidae
 Echimyidae
 Myocastoridae
 Capromyidae
 †Heptaxodontidae

This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but

its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please help
to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (April
2023) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation.
The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of the family Hystricidae, and
the New World porcupines of the family Erethizontidae.[1][2][additional citation(s) needed] Both
families belong to the infraorder Hystricognathi within the profoundly diverse order Rodentia and display
superficially similar coats of rigid or semi-rigid quills, which are modified hairs composed of keratin.
Despite this, the two groups are distinct from one another and are not closely related to each other
within the Hystricognathi. The largest species of porcupine is the third-largest living rodent in the world,
after the capybara and beaver.
The Old World porcupines (Hystricidae) live in Italy, Asia (western[3] and southern), and most of Africa.
They are large, terrestrial, and strictly nocturnal.
The New World porcupines (Erethizontidae) are indigenous to North America and northern South
America. They live in wooded areas and can climb trees, where some species spend their entire lives.
They are less strictly nocturnal than their Old World counterparts and generally smaller.
Most porcupines are about 60–90 cm (25–36 in) long, with a 20–25 cm (8–10 in) long tail. Weighing 5–
16 kg (12–35 lb), they are rounded, large, and slow, and use an aposematic strategy of defence.
Porcupines' colouration consists of various shades of brown, grey and white. Porcupines' spiny
protection resembles that of the only distantly related erinaceomorph hedgehogs and
Australian monotreme echidnas as well as tenrecid tenrecs.

Etymology[edit]
The word "porcupine" comes from Latin porcus pig + spina spine, quill, via Old Italian (Italian
"porcospino", thorn-pig)—Middle French—Middle English.[4][5] A regional American name for the
animal is "quill-pig".[6]
A baby porcupine is a porcupette. When born, a porcupette's quills are soft hair; they harden within a
few days, forming the sharp quills of adults.[7]

Evolution[edit]

This section needs
expansion. You can help
by adding to it. (March
 2022)

Fossils belonging to the genus Hystrix date back to the late Miocene of the continent of Africa.[8]

Species[edit]

Old World porcupine

Taxonomy[edit]
A porcupine is any of 30 species of rodents belonging to the
families Erethizontidae (genera: Coendou, Erethizon, and Chaetomys)
or Hystricidae (genera: Atherurus, Hystrix, and Trichys). Porcupines vary in size considerably: Rothschild's
porcupine of South America weighs less than a kilogram (2.2 lb); the crested porcupine found
in Italy, North Africa, and sub-Saharan Africa can grow to well over 27 kg (60 lb). The two families of
porcupines are quite different, and although both belong to the Hystricognathi branch of the vast
order Rodentia, they are not closely related.
Old World compared with New World species[edit]
The 11 Old World porcupines tend to be fairly large and have spines grouped in clusters.
The two subfamilies of New World porcupines are mostly smaller (although the North American
porcupine reaches about 85 cm or 33 in in length and 18 kg or 40 lb), have their quills attached singly
rather than grouped in clusters, and are excellent climbers, spending much of their time in trees. The
New World porcupines evolved their spines independently (through convergent evolution) and are more
closely related to several other families of rodents than they are to the Old World porcupines.[9]
Longevity[edit]
Porcupines have a relatively high longevity and hold the record for being the longest-living rodent, with
one individual named Cooper living over 32 years.[10]
Diet[edit]
The North American porcupine is a herbivore and often climbs trees for food; it eats leaves, herbs, twigs,
and green plants such as clover. In the winter, it may eat bark.[2] The African porcupine is not a climber;
instead, it forages on the ground.[2] It is mostly nocturnal[11] but will sometimes forage for food in the
day, eating bark, roots, fruits, berries, and farm crops. Porcupines have become a pest in Kenya and are
eaten as a delicacy.[12]
Defence[edit]
Defensive behaviour displays in a porcupine depend on sight, scent, and sound. Often, these displays are
shown when a porcupine becomes agitated or annoyed. There are four main displays seen in a
porcupine: (in order from least to most aggressive) quill erection, teeth clattering, odour emission, and
attack.[13] A porcupine's colouring aids in part of its defence as most of the predators are nocturnal and
colour blind. A porcupine's markings are black and white. The dark body and coarse hair of the
porcupine are a dark brown/black and when quills are raised, present a white strip down its back
mimicking the look of a skunk. This, along with the raising of the sharp quills, deters predators. Along
with the raising of the quills, porcupines clatter their teeth to warn predators not to approach. The
incisors vibrate against each other, the strike zone shifts back, and the cheek teeth clatter. This behaviour
is often paired with body shivering, which is used to further display the dangerous quills.[13] The rattling
of quills is aided by the hollow quills at the back end of the porcupine.[14] The use of odor is when the
sight and sound have failed. An unpleasant scent is produced from the skin above the tail in times of
stress and is often seen with quill erection.[15] If these processes fail, the porcupine will attack by
running sideways or backwards into predators. A porcupine's tail can also be swung in the direction of
the predator; if contact is made, the quills could be impaled into the predator causing injury or death.
[16]
Quills[edit]

Quills grow in varying lengths and colours, depending on the

animal's age and species.
Porcupines' quills, or spines, take on various forms, depending on the species, but all are modified hairs
coated with thick plates of keratin,[17] and embedded in the skin musculature. Old World porcupines
have quills embedded in clusters, whereas in New World porcupines, single quills are interspersed with
bristles, underfur, and hair.
Quills are released by contact or may drop out when the porcupine shakes its body. New quills grow to
replace lost ones.[17][2] Despite what is commonly believed, porcupines do not have the ability to
launch their quills at range.[18][19]
There are some possible antibiotic properties within the quills, specifically associated with the free fatty
acids coating the quills.[14] The antibiotic properties are believed to aid a porcupine that has suffered
from self-injury.

Uses by humans[edit]
 Porcupine guard hair headdress made by native peoples
from Sonora displayed at the Museo de Arte Popular in Mexico City
Porcupines are seldom eaten in Western culture but are eaten often in Southeast Asia,
particularly Vietnam, where the prominent use of them as a food source has contributed to declines in
porcupine populations.[20][21][22]
Naturalist William J. Long reported the taste of the North American porcupine as "vile" and
"malodorous" and delightful only to a lover of strong cheese. With regards to a Maine state law that
restricted the killing of porcupines to keep them available as emergency game for people lost in the
woods, he noted: "It is undoubtedly a good law; but I cannot now imagine any one being grateful for it,
unless the stern alternative were death or porcupine."[23]
More commonly, their quills and guard hairs are used for traditional decorative clothing; for example,
their guard hairs are used in the creation of the Native American "porky roach" headdress. The main
quills may be dyed, then applied in combination with thread to embellish leather accessories, such as
knife sheaths and leather bags. Lakota women would harvest the quills for quillwork by throwing a
blanket over a porcupine and retrieving the quills left stuck in the blanket.[24]
The presence of barbs, acting like anchors, causes increased pain when removing a quill that has pierced
the skin.[17] The shape of the barbs makes the quills effective for penetrating the skin and for remaining
in place.[25] The quills have inspired research for such applications as the design of hypodermic needles
and surgical staples.[25][26] In contrast to the current design for surgical staples, the porcupine quill and
barb design would allow easy and painless insertion, as the staple would stay in the skin using the
anchored barb design rather than being bent under the skin like traditional staples.[26] Porcupines are
also sometimes kept as an exotic pet.
 The American Libertarian Porcupine Logo
The porcupine is often used as a symbol of American libertarianism due to its natural embodiment of
defensiveness and the non-aggression principle.[27]

Habitat[edit]

A pair of North American porcupines in their habitat in Quebec

Porcupines occupy a small range of habitats in tropical and temperate parts of Asia, Southern Europe,
Africa, and North and South America. They live in forests and deserts, rocky outcrops, and hillsides.
Some New World porcupines live in trees, but Old World porcupines prefer a rocky environment.
Porcupines can be found on rocky areas up to 3,700 m (12,100 ft) high. They are generally nocturnal but
are occasionally active during daylight.

Hunting porcupine near the town of Cassem, in a miniature

from The Book of Wonders by Italian explorer Marco Polo (first book, manuscript 2810)

Classification[edit]

North American porcupine eating grass and clover

Porcupines are distributed into two evolutionarily independent groups within the
suborder Hystricomorpha of the Rodentia.[28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35]

 Infraorder Hystricognathi
o Family Hystricidae: Old World porcupines
 African brush-tailed porcupine, Atherurus africanus
 Asiatic brush-tailed porcupine, Atherurus macrourus
 Crested porcupine, Hystrix cristata
 Cape porcupine, Hystrix africaeaustralis
 Indian porcupine, Hystrix indicus
 Malayan porcupine, Hystrix brachyura
 Himalayan porcupine, Hystrix (brachyura) hodgsoni
 Sunda porcupine, Hystrix javanica
 Sumatran porcupine, Hystrix (Thecurus) sumatrae
 Thick-spined porcupine, Hystrix (Thecurus) crassispinis
 Philippine porcupine, Hystrix (Thecurus) pumilis
 Long-tailed porcupine, Trichys fasciculata
o Parvorder Phiomorpha sensu stricto
 Family Thryonomyidae: cane rats
 Family Petromuridae: Dassie rats
 Family Bathyergidae: African mole-rats
o Parvorder Caviomorpha
 Superfamily Erethizontoidea
 Family Erethizontidae: New World porcupines
 Brazilian porcupine, Coendou prehensilis
 Bicolored-spined porcupine, Coendou
bicolor
 Andean porcupine, Coendou quichua
 Black dwarf (Koopman's)
porcupine, Coendou nycthemera
(koopmani)
 Rothschild's porcupine, Coendou
rothschildi
 Santa Marta porcupine, Coendou
sanctemartae
 Mexican hairy dwarf porcupine, Coendou
mexicanus
 Paraguaian hairy dwarf
porcupine, Coendou spinosus
 Bahia porcupine, Coendou insidiosus
 Brown hairy dwarf porcupine, Coendou
vestitus
 Streaked dwarf porcupine, Coendou
ichillus
  Black-tailed hairy dwarf
porcupine, Coendou melanurus
 Roosmalen's dwarf porcupine, Coendou
roosmalenorum
 Frosted hairy dwarf porcupine, Coendou
pruinosus
 Stump-tailed porcupine, Coendou
rufescens
 North American porcupine, Erethizon
dorsatum
 Bristle-spined porcupine, Chaetomys
subspinosus (sometimes considered
an echimyid)
 Superfamily Cavioidea
 Family Hydrochaeridae: capybara
 Family Caviidae: Guinea-pigs
 Family Dasyproctidae: agoutis and acouchis
 Superfamily Octodontoidea
 Family Abrocomidae: chinchilla-rats
 Family Octodontidae: degus
 Family Ctenomyidae: tuco-tucos
 Family Echimyidae: spiny rats
 Family Myocastoridae: nutrias
 Family Capromyidae: hutias
 Superfamily Chinchilloidea
 Family Chinchillidae: chinchillas and allies
 Family Dinomyidae: pacaranas

See also[edit]

 Pangolins, another mammal group with protective keratin body coverings

 Armadillos, another mammal group with protective keratin body coverings

References[edit]

1. ^ Roze, Uldis (2012). Porcupines: The Animal Answer Guide. Baltimore, Maryland, USA:
John Hopkins University Press. p. 1. ISBN 978-1-4214-0735-7.
2. ^ Jump up to:a b c d "Porcupine". Animals. National Geographic. 10 September 2010.
Archived from the original on 27 January 2017. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
3. ^ Porcupine Archived 2015-02-25 at the Wayback Machine. biblehub.com
4. ^ Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, s.v. "porcupine Archived 2017-05-31 at
the Wayback Machine" . Retrieved March 26, 2015.
5. ^ Wedgwood, Hensleigh (1855). "On False Etymologies". Transactions of the Philological
Society (6): 68. Archived from the original on 2018-12-04. Retrieved 2018-09-22.
6. ^ Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. "quill Archived 2012-04-25 at the Wayback Machine" .
Retrieved July 20, 2010.
7. ^ "Reference.com". Archived from the original on 2017-03-10.
8. ^ Barthelmess, E.L. (2006). "Hystrix africaeaustralis". Mammalian Species (788): 1–
7. doi:10.1644/788.1.
9. ^ "Porcupines". World Animal Foundation. 19 October 2021. Archived from the
original on 19 October 2021. Retrieved 29 October 2021.
10. ^ "Cooper the porcupine, believed to be world's oldest rodent, celebrates 32nd birthday
at the Museum of Science - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. Archived from the
original on 2021-10-28. Retrieved 2021-10-12.
11. ^ "North American porcupine – Erethizon dorsatum (Linnaeus, 1758)". Natural History
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External links[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Porcupines.

 Wildlife Conservation: Porcupine – African Wildlife Foundation

 "Resource Cards: What About Porcupines?" – Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
 Porcupine control in the western states – University of North Texas Digital Library
 The Complete Resource To Keeping Porcupines As Pets
Categories: 
 Porcupines
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 Hystricognath rodents
 Rodents by common name
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