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Predators in the wild include birds of prey, skunks, felines, snakes and canines. Chinchillas have a variety of defensive tactics, including spraying urine and releasing fur if bitten. In the wild, chinchillas have been observed eating plant leaves, fruits, seeds, and small insects. [10]
Chinchillas have natural predators in the wild, on the ground and in the sky. Birds, such as owls and hawks may swoop down and snatch chinchillas. On the ground, snakes, wild cats, and foxes hunt chinchillas as prey. In the three recognized populations, the Andean fox is the main predator. However, chinchillas are agile and can run up to 15 mph ...
The family Chinchillidae is in the order Rodentia and consists of the chinchillas, the viscachas, and their fossil relatives. This family is restricted to southern and western South America, mostly living in mountainous regions of the Andes but one species living on plains.
A young wild Chilean chinchilla (2006) A domesticated chinchilla Chinchilla lanigera is smaller—wild animals have body lengths up to 260 mm (10 in)—has more rounded ears—45 mm (1.8 in) in length)—and a longer tail than C. chinchilla; its tail is usually about a third the size of its body—up to 130 mm (5.1 in) compared to 100 mm (3.9 in) in C. chinchilla.
Viscacha or vizcacha (UK: / v ɪ ˈ s k æ tʃ ə /, US: / v ɪ ˈ s k ɑː tʃ ə /) are rodents of two genera (Lagidium and Lagostomus) in the family Chinchillidae.They are native to South America and convergently resemble rabbits.
The northern viscacha is more often found on larger, steeper portions of cliffs. This preference is probably driven by a need to avoid predators, as land-based carnivores are more easily evaded on a steep slope. It rarely ventures far from rocks, as these provide a means of escaping from both aerial and terrestrial predators. [7]
The nocturnal chinchillas, two threatened members of the rodent order, inhabits the Andes' alpine regions, but are well known in captivity. [ 3 ] [ 1 ] Another domestic that originates from the Andean region is the guinea pig .
The domestic chinchilla is descended from Chinchilla lanigera, the long-tailed Chinchilla, and so have thinner bodies, longer tails and larger ears. Wild chinchillas roam in herds, so domestic chinchillas also like to have a companion and can live to be over 10 years old. They subsist on a diet of grass, hay, and grass-based chinchilla pellets.