THE CHINCHILLA FAMILY. 



167 



parts of the^ Cordilleras of Peru, Chile, and | The other (Eriomys laniger {.Chinchilla lani- 



Bolivia, where they 

 are much hunted on 

 account of their ex- 

 traordinarily fine and 

 soft fur, which has a 

 pretty silvery look 

 and is of a pearl-gray 

 colour. Illustrations 

 are given of the two 

 species to which the 

 name Chinchilla is 

 specially applied, and 

 which are celebrated 

 under that name on 

 account of their ex- 

 tremely valuable fur. 

 The first of these 

 (Eripmys chinchilla 

 {Chinchilla brevicau- 

 data)), fig. 227, is of 

 about the size of a 

 squirrel, but has a 

 much more thickset 



I: 





Fig. 228.— The Smaller Chinchilla (Eriomys laniger). 



gera)), fig. 228, is the 

 smaller species, and 

 occurs chiefly in Chile. 

 In both species the 

 head is round, and 

 the ears are large, 

 the whisker-hairs long 

 and thick. The fore- 

 feet have five pretty 

 long divergent toes, 

 the hind ones four 

 toes with short claws. 

 The genus is likewise 

 characterized by hav- 

 ing the cheek-teeth 

 composed of three 

 narrow plates of ena- 

 mel, and their tail 

 completely covered 

 with hair, as well as 

 by their naked ankle 

 (tarsus). 



The chinchillas are 



body. It is distributed over Peru and Bolivia. | agile animals, which run and climb well. 



Fig. 229.— Cuvier's Lagidium (Lagidium Cuvieri). page 168. 



They are fond of stony districts, and live 

 socially in holes dug out by themselves. 



They resemble marmots in their general 

 mode of life. In confinement they are ex- 



