Freaky Large Rodents Come to Pittsburgh Zoo

There’s not a mousetrap large enough to harm these creatures. So if you’re afraid of mice and rats, you might want to steer clear of a section of Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium’s new Jungle Odyssey exhibit.

The zoo has acquired three capybaras, which are the world’s largest rodents. Indigenous to South America, they bear a striking resemblance to guinea pigs - except these guinea pigs can weigh as much as 150 pounds.

They’ll be a part of the new exhibit opening this summer that seeks to replicate some of the world’s densest forest environments and will even include a zip line. Joining the capybaras in Jungle Odyssey will be animals such as a pygmy hippo, giant anteater, ocelots and fossas.

Ginger Sturgeon, the zoo’s director of animal care, predicted the capybaras will spend much of their time lounging in the water once they are placed in the exhibit. “They just kind of hunker down, hoping you don’t see them,” she told WESA-FM.

Obtained from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, the capybaras are named Lysa, Varys and Melisandre. The trio was christened after characters on the HBO TV series “Game of Thrones.”

Photo by Tanya Durrant via Creative Commons.