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Lagidium viscacia
They are closely related to chinchillas, and look similar to rabbits, apart from their longer tails. There are five extant species of viscacha: Plains Viscacha, Northern Viscacha, Mountain Viscacha, Wolffsohn's Viscacha, and Lagidium ahuacaense: a newly described species of mountain viscacha from the Ecuadorean Andes.
Incredibly fast and fantastic climbers, I watched them accelerate to upwards of 30-35mph in the blink of an eye and also jump straight up a wall like spider-man. The Andean Cat Project has a picture with an Andean Mountain Cat with a Viscacha in its mouth, which amazes me to think a small cat can catch these fast and agile prey.
Spotted on May 25, 2013
Submitted on May 25, 2013
3 Comments
Thanks Mauna and Carmela! Well i hope you get a chance to see them soon Carmela, because i think the viscachas in Peru are the best looking subspecies of all the Viscachas :)
Wonderful.
Thanks for the great picture! I lived in Peru for many years, but I never had a chance to view this elusive creature.