This guinea pig was recorded in the eastern Andes of Ecuador. Reported new localities lie at 2,800–3,800 m. Field observations describe grazing on grasses and occasional visits to the edges of apple plots; ecological information remains limited.
The described animals had dark reddish-brown upper fur, with longer guard hairs over the coat. The ventral fur was pale orange, stronger on the chest; the small ears carried short yellowish hairs.
Authors’ observations and local reports indicate that it forages on Stipa and Paspalum grasses and sometimes visits apple-plot edges to feed on bark and a small herb. The paper suggests conventional box traps may miss the species and discusses pitfall traps as an alternative.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.