A tuco-tuco is a neotropical rodent in the family Ctenomyidae. Tuco-tucos belong to the only living genus of the family Ctenomyidae, Ctenomys, but they include approximately 60 different species. The common name, "tuco-tuco", comes from the "tuc-tuc" sound they make while they dig their burrows.
GENUS
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A tuco-tuco is a neotropical rodent in the family Ctenomyidae. Tuco-tucos belong to the only living genus of the family Ctenomyidae, Ctenomys, but they include approximately 60 different species. The common name, "tuco-tuco", comes from the "tuc-tuc" sound they make while they dig their burrows.
The relationships among the species are debated by taxonomists. It has been described that they are in a state of "taxonomic chaos", but banded karyotypes have been used to help make progress on their taxonomic study. Their closest relatives are degus and other octodontids. All species of tuco-tucos are found in South America from Peru and central Brazil southward. The tuco-tucos of South America have an ecological role equivalent to that of the pocket gophers of North America.
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