African Cape Crested Porcupine Skull for Sale, measuring approximately 5 inches long and 2-7/8 inches wide.  This African Cape Crested Porcupine Skull (Hystrix africaeaustralis) has been cleaned and whitened in South Africa and is ready for display. The Cape porcupine (Hystrix africaeaustralis), Cape crested porcupine or South African porcupine, is a species of Old World Porcupine native to central and southern Africa.  Cape porcupines are the second largest rodents in Africa and also the world's second largest porcupines. Cape porcupines are amongst the largest living rodents in the world. The crested porcupines have band of short white spines along the midline of the rump. They are heavily-built animals, with stocky bodies, short limbs, and an inconspicuous tail. The body is covered in long spines up to 20 inches in length, interspersed with thicker, sharply pointed, defense quills up to12 inches long, and with bristly, blackish or brownish fur. The spines on the tail are hollow, and used to make a rattling sound to scare away predators. An erectile crest of long, bristly hairs runs from the top of the head down to the shoulders. The spines and quills cover the back and flanks of the animal, starting about a third of the way down the body, and continuing onto the tail. The quills have multiple bands of black and white along their length, and grow from regularly spaced grooves along the animal's body; each groove holding five to eight quills. The remainder of the animal, including the undersides, is covered with dark hair.