todropscience:EXTINCT BRUSH TAILED RAT aka DEGU REDISCOVERED IN MOCHA ISLAND, IN CHILEResearchers fr
todropscience:EXTINCT BRUSH TAILED RAT aka DEGU REDISCOVERED IN MOCHA ISLAND, IN CHILEResearchers from University of Concepción detected last December 2015 in Mocha island, for the first time after 56 years, a Pacific Degu or Mocha Island Degu (Octodon pacificus), a species of mouse described in 1959 but never detected again, it was presumed extinct on the island, located in the Central-South of ChileAfter the announcement of a local person, that had found a large mouse, subsequent studies indicated that it was a pregnant mature female. Despite having been found dead, is an indicator that should at least be a small population that reaches rural places in the area.The degu, sometimes referred to as the brush-tailed rat, is a small caviomorph rodent that is endemic to the Chilean matorral ecoregion of central Chile.With 38 cm long, and a tail of 18 cm, the Pacific degu is one of the biggest in the genus Octodon. Habitat loss, competition with invasive species such as the black rat (Rattus rattus) and a small population could be the cause of the extreme decline of the species.infography: La TerceraFoto: Mocha island Degu, Universidad de Ulm by H Turni -- source link