Chinchilla lanigera has a head and body length of 225-380 mm, and a tail averaging 75-150 mm. The species is sexually dimorphic with the female weighing up to 800 g and the male only 500 g.
The fur of members of this species is extremely dense and soft. Each hair usually has a black tip, and as many as 60 hairs grow out of one follicle. The ventral side is usually bluish, pearl, or brownish gray, and the belly is yellowish-white. Its tail is furry with coarse hairs on the dorsal surface.
The head is broad and the external ears are large. Chinchillas have large, black eyes with a vertical split pupil, vestigial cheek pouches, and incisors with colored enamel. Both the forefoot and hindfoot have four digits with stiff bristles surrounding the weak claws.
(Nowak 1991, Grzimek 1975)
Range mass: 0.5 to 0.8 kg.
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; homoiothermic; bilateral symmetry
Sexual Dimorphism: female larger
Average basal metabolic rate: 1.31 W.
Average lifespan
Status: wild: 10.0 years.
Average lifespan
Status: wild: 11.3 years.
Chinchilla lanigera is found in the barren, arid areas of mountains at elevations of 3,000-5,000 meters. These animals den in crevices and holes among the rocks.
(Nowak 1991, Burton 1987)
Terrestrial Biomes: mountains
Chinchilla lanigera is currently found only in the mountains of northern Chile (Nowak 1991).
Biogeographic Regions: neotropical (Native )
Long-tailed chinchillas are primarily folivorous, feeding on many types of vegetation, but primarily on grass and seeds. They may also eat insects and bird eggs opportunistically. While eating, C. lanigera sits erect and holds the food in its forepaws.
Domesticated chinchillas are fed alfalfa, hay, wheat, corn, oats, and commercial food pellets.
(Nowak 1991, Grzimek 1975, Babinszki 1997)
Animal Foods: eggs; insects
Plant Foods: leaves; seeds, grains, and nuts
Primary Diet: herbivore (Folivore )
The long-tailed chinchilla has been harvested since pre-Columbian times by the Incas and Native Americans of Chile. Chinchilla lanigera was plentiful at this time, and one author reported that one could see an many as 1000 animals in one day.
Chinchillas were first bred in captivity at the end of the 19th century, but it was not until 1920 that commercial breeding began. Domesticated chinchillas have been described as smarter than the average rabbit and more fun than rats. They memorize trails and have good memories. Chinchillas are very shy animals and are very trusting of their owners.
Chinchilla lanigera is also referred to as Chilean chinchilla.
(Burton 1997, Grzimek 1975, Jimenez 1995, http://members.aol.com/chinmom/chinfaq.html)
Perception Channels: tactile ; chemical
IUCN lists Chinchilla lanigera as vulnerable. Chinchillas are now protected by law in their natural habitat, yet hunting of this animal for its fur continues in remote areas, which makes enforcement hard. Populations of C. lanigera have also dwindled because of burning and harvesting of the algarobilla shrub in the lower altitudes. Fewer than 10,000 C. lanigera are thought to have survived in the wild, and attempts to reintroduce chinchillas into the wild have failed.
The Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora lists all chinchilla species in Appendix 1, making international trade in the animals or their skins illegal among all the signer nations.
Today, many chinchillas are bred commercially.
(Nowak 1991, Jimenez 1995)
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: appendix i
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: critically endangered
Chinchillas have been hunted for human apparel since the early 1900s. Around 1900, an estimated 500,000 chinchilla skins were exported annually from Chile. Chinchilla pelt is considered by some to be the most valuable pelt in the world, and coats have sold as much as $100,000. International trade in wild chinchillas or their skins is now restricted by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
(Nowak 1991, Jimenez 1995)
Positive Impacts: body parts are source of valuable material
Female chinchillas are mostly monogamous. The breeding season occurs between November and May in the Northern Hemisphere and between May and November in the Southern Hemisphere. Females normally have two litters per year, with two to three young per litter.
Gestation of C. lanigera lasts for 111 days, and the young are precocial or well developed at birth. The newborn chinchillas weigh up to 35 g, are fully furred, and have their eyes open. Lactation lasts for 6-8 weeks and sexual maturity is attained after 8 months.
Life span in the wild of C. lanigera is roughly 10 years, but some domesticated chinchillas have lived for over 20 years.
(Nowak 1991, Grzimek 1975)
Range number of offspring: 1 to 6.
Range gestation period: 105 to 115 days.
Average gestation period: 111 days.
Average weaning age: 60 days.
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; viviparous
Average birth mass: 35 g.
Average number of offspring: 2.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male)
Sex: male: 240 days.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female)
Sex: female: 240 days.
Parental Investment: precocial
The long-tailed chinchilla (Chinchilla lanigera), also called the Chilean, coastal, common, or lesser chinchilla, is one of two species of rodent from the genus Chinchilla: the other species being C. chinchilla.[4] Both species are endangered in the wild after historically being hunted for their soft hair coats. Domestic breeds of chinchilla are believed to descend from specimens of C. lanigera. Domestic chinchillas come in three types: la plata, costina, and raton.
Historically, Chilean chinchillas were reported from Talca (35°30’S), Chile, north to Peru,[5] and also eastward, from Chilean coastal hills, throughout low mountains. No fossils of the Chilean chinchilla are known to have been found, and by the mid-19th century, Chilean chinchillas were not found south of the Choapa River in central Chile. Wild populations of Chilean chinchillas, as of 1996, occurred in Aucó (31°38’S, 71°06’W), near Illapel, IV Región, Chile, in Reserva Nacional Las Chinchillas and in La Higuera, Chile, about 100 km (62 mi) north of Coquimbo (29°33’S, 71°04’W).[6]
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. The number of caudal vertebrae is 23 in C. lanigera versus 20 in C. chinchilla. Males typically weigh 369–493 g (13.0–17.4 oz) with a mean of 412 g (14.5 oz), while females weigh 379–450 g (13.4–15.9 oz) with a mean of 422 g (14.9 oz).[7] Domesticated animals are larger than wild ones and more sexually dimorphic, with the female weighing up to 800 g (28 oz) and males up to 600 g (21 oz).
The word lanigera translates into 'bearing a woolen coat', yet chinchillas do not have a woolen coat, but instead one consisting of hair. Chinchilla's hair color was originally mottled yellow-gray in the wild. Through selective breeding, their dominant colors include beige, white, and ebony, and the recessive colors include sapphire, violet, charcoal, and velvet.[8] Their hair is 2–4 cm (0.79–1.57 in) long. It is silky, extremely soft, and firmly adhered to the skin.[5] Up to 75 hairs, 5–11 mm (0.20–0.43 in) in diameter, emerge together from a single hair follicle. Vibrissae (whiskers) are abundant, strong, and long—100–130 mm (3.9–5.1 in)—and emerge from single follicles.[9] The general color of their upper parts is bluish or silvery gray; the underparts are yellowish-white. The tail has long, coarse, gray and black hairs on its dorsal surface—30–40 mm (1.2–1.6 in) long near the body; 50–60 mm (2.0–2.4 in) long near the tip—and form a bristly tuft that exceeds the animal's vertebrae by 50 mm (2.0 in).[5]
Chinchilla lanigera's karyotype has 2n = 64 and FN = 126.[4]
Chinchillas have a vertical split pupil in both eyes. They also have fleshy foot pads, which are known as pallipes. They can move the toes on their forelimbs to grasp things. Their hindlimbs tend to be longer than their forelimbs, like rabbits.[10]
Three different types of domestic chinchilla are commonly recognized: la plata, costina, and raton.[11]
The la plata type has a better-developed musculature and heavier bone structure than the other two types. The typical la plata looks more roundish or compact, with a short, wide head, a large distance from one ear to another, and a relatively straight dorsal line. The shoulders are often as wide as the chest and rump. The ears are short and nearly round.
The costina type is weaker in musculature and bone structure, with the most distinctive feature being its longer hind legs. The fore legs are shorter and placed closer together, and the shoulders are narrower. The vertebral column is more arched; the neck line is sometimes very deep, forming a slight hump on the back of the animal. When viewed directly from the front, the head is V-shaped, the nose is pointed, and the distance between the ears is rather large. The ears are long and positioned at an angle around 45°.
The raton type is reminiscent of the la plata type in its body structure, but the nose is pointed as in the costina. The ears are positioned very close together and rather horizontal. It is distinctly smaller, on average.
Chinchillas live in burrows or rock crevices in the Andes of Northern Chile at elevations of about 3,000 to 5,000 m (9,800 to 16,400 ft).[12]
The climate in the wild chinchillas' native habitat is rather harsh, with daytime summer temperatures climbing up to 30 °C (86 °F) in the shade and dropping to 7 °C (45 °F) at night (even below the freezing point in winter).[7]
In the wild, they breed seasonally between October and December, the months of spring in the Southern Hemisphere.[7]
Chinchillas should be carefully bred in a dry and cool environment. The proper temperature for chinchillas to live in is 65°–80 °F (18.3°–26.7 °C).[8] Extremely high temperatures (higher than 80 °F or 26.7 °C) and low temperatures (lower than 30 °F or 0 °C) are considered unsuitable for chinchilla growth. Exposure to the extremely high temperature can result in heatstroke.[8] The high humidity may also affect the hair growth.
As rodents, they are crepuscular animals - active during twilight hours. As herbivores, they are gregarious and prefer living in groups. Usually, males and females have a harmonious relationship with each other. They rarely fight in the breeding and mating season. Chinchillas are matriarchal animals.[10]
Chinchillas have a high demand for dietary fiber. A well-balanced chinchilla diet consists of high-quality grass hay, chinchilla pellets and limited amounts of vegetables and fruits. They should be provided clean and filtered water contained in a bottle equipped with a sipper tube daily.[12] The feed intakes of adult chinchillas are about 5-6% of their weights. The posture of the chinchilla when eating food is like that of the squirrel. They use hind limbs to sit and use forelimbs to grab the food and put them in their mouth.
Chinchillas require a dust bath at least twice a week in fine volcanic ash.[12] They like to play and roll in the dust.
There is no obvious seasonal variation in the reproductive organs of the male chinchilla. They have good sexual desire and breeding ability all year round. The breeding season is mostly from November to May in the Northern Hemisphere and from May to November in the Southern Hemisphere. The female chinchilla's gestation period is 110 to 124 days. The females can have babies 2 times per year and 1 to 6 in a litter each time they give birth.[12] The newborn chinchilla is born with hair and can run immediately after birth. The birth weight is about 1.2 ounces (35 grams). The breastfeeding period is about 45 days (6 to 8 weeks). Chinchillas become adults when they are about 8 months old. Generally, their average lifespan is 10 years, though some can live up to 20 years with human care..[12]
Over 100 Chinchillas have historically been hunted for their luxurious coats. This has led to their endangered status.
The Chilean chinchilla is endangered, with the second-highest conservation priority among Chilean mammals.[13]
{{cite web}}: |first2= has generic name (help) The long-tailed chinchilla (Chinchilla lanigera), also called the Chilean, coastal, common, or lesser chinchilla, is one of two species of rodent from the genus Chinchilla: the other species being C. chinchilla. Both species are endangered in the wild after historically being hunted for their soft hair coats. Domestic breeds of chinchilla are believed to descend from specimens of C. lanigera. Domestic chinchillas come in three types: la plata, costina, and raton.
Historically, Chilean chinchillas were reported from Talca (35°30’S), Chile, north to Peru, and also eastward, from Chilean coastal hills, throughout low mountains. No fossils of the Chilean chinchilla are known to have been found, and by the mid-19th century, Chilean chinchillas were not found south of the Choapa River in central Chile. Wild populations of Chilean chinchillas, as of 1996, occurred in Aucó (31°38’S, 71°06’W), near Illapel, IV Región, Chile, in Reserva Nacional Las Chinchillas and in La Higuera, Chile, about 100 km (62 mi) north of Coquimbo (29°33’S, 71°04’W).
