Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Cladus: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Cladus: Synapsida
Cladus: Eupelycosauria
Cladus: Sphenacodontia
Cladus: Sphenacodontoidea
Ordo: Therapsida
Cladus: Theriodontia
Subordo: Cynodontia
Cladus: Mammaliaformes
Classis: Mammalia
Subclassis: Trechnotheria
Infraclassis: Zatheria
Supercohort: Theria
Cohort: Eutheria
Cohort: Placentalia
Cladus: Boreoeutheria
Superordo: Euarchontoglires
Ordo: Rodentia
Subordo: Hystricomorpha
Infraordo: Hystricognathi
Infraordo: Caviomorpha
Superfamilia: Chinchilloidea
Familia: Chinchillidae
Genus: Lagostomus
Species: Lagostomus maximus
Name
Lagostomus maximus (Desmarest, 1817)
References
Lagostomus maximus in Mammal Species of the World.
Wilson, Don E. & Reeder, DeeAnn M. (Editors) 2005. Mammal Species of the World – A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference. Third edition. ISBN 0-8018-8221-4.
Vernacular names
English: Plains Viscacha
español: Vizcacha de las llanuras
magyar: Pampaszinyúl
italiano: Viscaccia di pianura
polski: Wiskacza
The plains viscacha or plains vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus) is a species of viscacha, a rodent in the family Chinchillidae.[2] It is the only living species within the genus Lagostomus. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, and Paraguay. The plains viscacha is the largest species in its family. They construct elaborate burrows that house successive colonies for decades.
The plains viscacha should not be confused with the plains viscacha rat.
Appearance
The plains viscacha is a large rodent, weighing up to 9 kg. It has an average head and body length over 500 mm, with the tail usually a little less than 200 mm long. The dorsal pelage ranges from gray to brown, depending upon soil color, and the belly is whitish. Its head is bulky, and the face is black and white; males have distinctive black mustaches and stiff whiskers. Their fore feet have four toes, and the hind feet have three toes.[3][4] Soft dense fur covers its body, from the tips of its ears to the end of its long, curled tail. The forelimbs are relatively short, while the contrastingly long and muscular hind limbs enable it run and jump with ease. The colour of its fur varies seasonally and with age, but generally the upperparts are grey to brown, with tints of cream and black, while the underparts are pale yellow or tan. [5]
Ecology and behavior
They live in communal burrow systems in groups containing one or more males, several females, and immatures. Viscachas forage in groups at night and aggregate underground during the day. All members of a group use burrows throughout the communal burrow system and participate in digging at the burrows. Alarm calls are given primarily by adult males. The long-term social unit of the plains viscacha is the female group. Resident males disappear each year and new males join groups of females. Viscachas live in colonies that range from a few individuals to hundreds. To keep up with the colony chatter, they have acquired an impressive repertoire of vocalizations that are used in social interactions.[6] Dominance is absent among females.[7] Members of a social group share a common foraging area around the communal burrow system, and feed on a variety of grasses and forbs, occasionally browsing on low shrubs.[8] They collect branches and heavy objects to cover the burrow entrance. When they live close to human settlements, tend to hoard brooms, tables, garden tools, firewood, trinkets, pieces of concrete, and many human-made objects to cover the burrow.
Subspecies
The species subspecies include:[9][10]
L. m. inmollis
L. m. maximus
L. m. peltilidens
Conservation
No known conservation measures are currently in place for the plains viscacha, but it does occur in several protected areas. Although hunting is not currently considered a major threat to this species, it needs to be monitored in case it starts to have a severe impact on the population.[11]
See also
Communal burrow
References
Roach, N. (2016). "Lagostomus maximus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T11170A78320596. Retrieved 13 February 2020.
Jackson, John E., Lyn C. Branch, and Diego Villarreal. "Lagostomus maximus." Mammalian Species 543 (1996): 1-6.
Anderson, S. (1997) Mammals of Bolivia: taxonomy and distribution. Bulletin of the AMNH, no. 231
Diaz, M.M et al. (1997) Key to Mammals of Salta Province, Argentina. Oklahoma Museum of Natural History. Occasional Paper No 2
"Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-06-29. Retrieved 2016-07-01.
http://www.conservacionpatagonica.org/blog/2011/06/29/species-profile-mountain-vizcacha/
Branch L. 1993. Social organization and mating system of the plains vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus). J Zool (Lond). 229:473–491
Giulietti J, Jackson J. 1986. Composición anual de la dieta de la vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus) en pastizales naturales en la provincia de San Luís, Argentina. Rev Argent Prod Anim. 6:229–237.
J.D. Giulietti et J.H. Veneciano, 2005. La vizcacha. Informativo Rural, E.E.A INTA San Luis, 2(7).
"Subespecies". Archived from the original on 2016-08-16. Retrieved 2016-07-01.
"Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2016-06-29. Retrieved 2016-07-01.
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