Species group · Mammals
Viscachas
WAnimals has 2 species of viscacha, all in the family Chinchillidae.
- 2 species
- 1 family
- 8 countries
- 23 parks
- Weight
- 1 kg – 9 kg
- Length
- 30 cm – 66 cm
- Lifespan
- 8 – 9 years
Ranges calculated from the entries that record the figure, not from all 2.
All 2 species of viscachas on WAnimals
Each one has its own full entry. This group does not replace them: it brings them together.
Conservation status
No species documented in this group is genuinely at risk according to the IUCN, with the data available today.
See the global conservation statusWhere they live
Recorded in 8 countries. The ones with the most species in the group:
Where to see them
Did you know…
It looks superficially like a long-tailed rabbit, though it is closer kin to the chinchilla, and groups of them sun themselves on the rocks in the early morning.
Its long tail curled upwards, together with its rabbit-like ears, gives it an unmistakable hybrid look, but it is related neither to rabbits nor to squirrels: it belongs to the chinchilla group.
It is the staple prey of the Andean cat, one of the most threatened cats in the world: where the viscachas go, the Andean cat goes after them.
This hyperovulation has no known equivalent in any other mammal.
From Plains Viscacha
It eats grasses, seeds and roots.
From Plains Viscacha
It is the largest living member of its family, with a marked difference in size between the sexes.
From Plains Viscacha