| Rattleback Temporal range: 5 million AD 
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 The North and South American rattlebacks. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Order: | Rodentia |
| Gallery | |
| “ | The rattleback evolved from the paca, a large ground-dwelling rodent found in a wide variety of habitats in South America and a small portion of North America. South American rattlebacks were highly successful on the dry grasslands that were spreading across the Amazon Basin. So much so, in fact, that they were able to migrate northwards into the North American Desert.
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Rattlebacks are a group of armoured rodents native to the Americas in 5 million AD. They evolved following the radical changes of the Amazon Rainforest, gradually replaced by an open grassland, before long spreading to the North American Desert which was once the American Midwest. They were a highly successful group of animals.
Evolution[]
The rattlebacks evolved from a South American rodent called the paca.[1] When the Amazon rainforest disappeared, replaced by the Amazon grassland, these rodents could no longer rely on the cover of the jungle to survive, and so evolved heavy armour and spines for defense. A very successful animal, the South American rattleback quickly migrated into North America, and adapted to live in the cold, harsh desert conditions of the American desert.
Biology[]
Both species have a common design: large bodies with overlapping, keratinous scales and also some spikes on the sides. The North and South American species can be distinguished by the following features: their build, scale shape and fur coverage. The 25-pound (11.4-kilogram) South American species has large, thick scales (to cope with harsh predation by carnivores on the savannah as well as fires) and spines to help lock itself into the ground). The 40-pound (18.2-kilogram) North American species is more slender in shape and has less broad and thinner scales as there are fewer predators in its desert home. It also, unlike its South American relative, has dense fur to keep it warm from the bitter cold and has a 10-inch (25.5-centimeter)-long tail tail which functions as an energy reserve. These traits would be a hindrance to the southern rattleback. The South American species is omnivorous; its diet includes plant matter and eggs of ground nesting birds. The North American species is strictly herbivorous, feeding only on desert tubers. As their names suggest, rattlebacks rattle the plates on their backs in order to communicate, settle territorial disputes and possibly scare off would-be predators.
Known species[]
List of appearances[]
- The Future Is Wild
- 1x01. Welcome to the Future
- 1x04. Prairies of Amazonia
- 1x05. Cold Kansas Desert
- The Future Is Wild: A Natural History of the Future
- The Future Is Wild manga
- The Future Is Wild animated series
- The Future Is Wild: The Living Book
Notes[]
- In "Prairies of Amazonia," Stephen Harris says that the rattlebacks "probably evolved" from "something like a paca or an agouti," and the footage shown depicts an agouti, rather than a paca. However, The Future Is Wild: A Natural History of the Future confirms that the rattlebacks evolved from the paca, not the agouti.