Don E. Wilson;Thomas E. Lacher, Jr;Russell A. Mittermeier
Chinchilla lanigera
Sign in to saveAlso known as Long-tailed chinchilla, Long-tailed Chinchilla, Chilean chinchila, Common chinchila, Coastal chinchila, Lesser chinchila
Rodent species
OverviewAI-generated
Chinchilla lanigera is a species of mammal belonging to the family Chinchillidae within the order Rodentia. It is classified under the kingdom Animalia, phylum Chordata, and class Mammalia. The species is commonly known as the Long-tailed chinchilla, Chinchilla Costina, Chinchilla De Cola Larga, and Chinchilla À Longue Queue. It is endemic to Chile and is recognized as a Lazarus taxon.
The IUCN Red List assesses the species as Endangered as of 2025. It is listed in Appendix I of CITES. The longest observed lifespan for this organism is 17.2 years. Scientific records include 694 occurrences, 355 records, and 141 observations. Specimens are held by institutions such as UWBM, UMZM, UCM, MSB, and MVZ, with records from the United States and Belgium.
Synthesized by Vinony from 33 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, GBIF, iNaturalist, Gbif Occ, IUCN Red List, iDigBio, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Species
EndangeredLong-tailed Chinchilla
SPECIES
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassMammalia
- OrderRodentia
- FamilyChinchillidae
Maximum longevity: 17.2 years (captivity) Observations: It has been reported that these animals have bred at 15 years of age and some have lived for more than 20 years in captivity (Ronald Nowak 1999), which is possible but unconfirmed. Record longevity in captivity is 17.2 years (Richard Weigl 2005).
via GBIF · IUCN
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 355
- With media
- 13
- Family
- Chinchillidae
- Collections
- UWBM, UMZM, UCM, MSB, MVZ, UMNH
- Recorded in
- United States, Belgium
~8 min read
Encyclopedic overview
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).
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Chinchilla lanigera” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.