Family OCTODONTIDAE

(VISCACHA RATS, DEGUS, ROCK RATS CORURO)

• Smallto medium-sized caviomorph rodents, with large heads, pointed noses with long vibrissae, dense and soft pelage, and short feet.

• 15-40 cm.

• Neotropical Region.

• (Coastal areas in central Chile, pre-Andean and Andean regions, desert and semi-desert scrublands, rainforests, and Mediterranean habitats.

• 8 genera, 14 species, 16 taxa.

• 3 species Critically Endangered, 1 Vulnerable; none Extinct since 1600.