never observed by Europeans; fossils contemporary with indigenous artifacts indicate survival into colonial era; "probably the last Puerto Rican mammal to become extinct" (Anthony 1918)
island forest herbivore endemic to Puerto Rico, eastern Hispanola, and Virgin Islands
disappeared after indigenous hunting and domestication for food
References:
Allen, G. M. Extinct and Vanishing Mammals of the Western Hemisphere QL715.A44 1942 p.119
Williams, J. and Nowak, R. chapter in The Last Extinction QH75.L36 1993 pp. 107-139
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