Viscacha

A South American rodent in the chinchilla family, adapted to rocky or open habitats and known for its long ears and bushy tail.

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Mountain viscacha: A rocky-habitat rodent of the Andes, belonging to the chinchilla family. This is the high-altitude kind most closely associated with rocky slopes.
Rock-dwelling animals: Animals that use rocky terrain for shelter, movement, or feeding. Mountain viscachas shelter in crevices and move across steep rock outcrops.
Chinchilla: A South American rodent genus whose species are prized for exceptionally dense fur. Chinchillas are close family relatives with a similarly specialized Andean heritage.
Lagidium viscacia: A mountain viscacha species found in the central Andes. This species illustrates the rocky-slope lifestyle of mountain viscachas.
Plains viscacha: A social, burrowing rodent of South American grasslands and scrub. It represents the open-country form, unlike the mountain-dwelling viscachas.
Burrowing: The excavation and use of underground passages by animals. Plains viscachas dig communal burrow systems that shelter colonies.
Degu: A social, diurnal rodent native to central Chile. Degus offer a nearby South American comparison in rodent ecology and social behavior.
Lagostomus maximus: The plains viscacha, a large burrowing rodent of southern South America. Its communal colonies and extensive burrows typify the plains form.
Chinchillidae: A family of South American rodents that includes chinchillas and viscachas. Viscachas belong to this family alongside their better-known chinchilla relatives.
Herbivore: An animal that obtains most of its food from plants. Plant feeding links viscachas to the productivity of grasslands and mountain vegetation.