chinchilla (chĭnchĭl`ə), small burrowing rodent of South America. It lives in colonies at high altitudes (up to 15,000 ft/4,270 m) in the Andes of Bolivia, Chile, and Peru. One of the costliest of all furs, its soft gray pelt has been valued since the days of the Inca. The wild chinchilla was nearly exterminated before protective laws were passed. At one time over 200,000 pelts were exported from Chile. Wild chinchilla coats have cost as much as $100,000. Chinchillas are now raised on farms in South America and the United States, and this has resulted in lower prices for the skins, which are still considered among the most valuable. Chinchillas are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Rodentia, family Chinchillidae.
Small South American rodent (genus Chinchilla, family Chinchillidae) long valued for its extremely fine-textured fur. Chinchillas look like long-tailed, small-eared rabbits. They are about 14 in. (35 cm) long, including the tufted tail. The soft fur is gray with dusky overtones; a black streak runs the length of the tail, above and below. Chinchillas live in loose communities in arid, rocky regions of the Chilean and Bolivian Andes, in burrows or rock crevices. They eat seeds, fruit, grain, herbs, and moss. Once hunted almost to extinction, they are still scarce in the wild. They are raised commercially; almost all animals in captivity have descended from a few animals introduced into the U.S. in 1923.
chinchilla
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Long-tailed chinchilla (Chinchilla laniger).
(credit: Jane Burton—Bruce Coleman Ltd.)
chinchilla
1. a small gregarious hystricomorph rodent, Chinchilla laniger, inhabiting mountainous regions of South America: family Chinchillidae. It has a stocky body and is bred in captivity for its soft silvery grey fur
2. the highly valued fur of this animal
3. mountain chinchilla any of several long-tailed rodents of the genus Lagidium, having coarse poor quality fur
4. a breed of rabbit with soft silver-grey fur
5. a thick napped woollen cloth used for coats
chinchilla
one of the costliest of furs, made into luxurious coats. [Western Culture: Misc.]
See : Luxury
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