I'd like to be your one-stop blog for news of oversized rodents.

Here's an artist's rendering of a guinea pig the size of a buffalo (alas it lived 8 million years ago and visitors to modern day Venezuela cannot see one) and here's the article which points out that, among the predators this rodent, nicknamed "Goya" had to contend with, there were "huge, flesh-eating birds called phorracoids".

Okay that must be some HUGE flesh-eating bird if it's gonna go after a buffalo-sized rodent. Scientists believe that Goya was too big to burrow (no kidding) and couldn't outrun his predators.

Lastly I'd like to point out that Google does not have any matches for "Phorracoid" and when you inquire about "Huge, flesh-eating bird" you are directed to this site which is a collection of oral histories of Vietnam helicopter pilots.

Why the cover-up?!?