Until recently Pediolagus was considered synonymous with Dolichotis and the Chacoan mara was a member of that genus.

However, a 2020 study by the American Society of Mammalogists found significant difference between the two mara species to warrant resurrecting Pediolagus.

[4] The American Society of Mammalogists and IUCN continue to recognize this species as a member of Dolichotis.

[1][5] The Chacoan mara lives in the South American Chaco, the dry thorny forests and grasslands of Argentina, Paraguay, and Bolivia.

[8] This flexibility is reflected by its subfamily's high diversity,[9] recorded as early as the late Miocene epoch.