Common degu Octodon degus Least concern
Where the common degu lives – recorded in 1 country, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.
Pin and shaded countries are approximate. The pin is a representative wild sighting (a central record among 57 open-licence GBIF records), not an official range. Method · Records on GBIF · See mice, rats & other rodents on the world map
| Scientific name | Octodon degus |
|---|---|
| Group | Mice, rats & other rodents |
| Status | Least concern (Wikidata, IUCN category label) |
| Found in | 1 country |
| Continents | South America |
| Mass | 14 g (birth weight) |
| Class | Mammal |
| Order | Rodentia |
| Family | Octodontidae |
Where does the common degu live?
Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the common degu in 1 country or territory across South America. Wikidata lists it as endemic to Chile.
Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.
How big is a common degu?
Wikidata records the following for the common degu: mass 14 g (birth weight).
Is the common degu endangered?
The common degu’s conservation status recorded in Wikidata is “Least concern” (an IUCN Red List category label). Source: Wikidata.
What kind of animal is the common degu?
The common degu (Octodon degus) is a mammal in the order Rodentia and the family Octodontidae, genus Octodon. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)
About the common degu
The common degu (Octodon degus; ), or, historically, the degu, is a small hystricomorpha rodent endemic to the Chilean matorral ecoregion of central Chile. The name degu on its own indicates either the entire genus Octodon or, more commonly, just the common degu. Common degus belong to the parvorder Caviomorpha of the infraorder Hystricognathi, along with the chinchilla and guinea pig. The word degu comes from the Mapuche word dewü, meaning 'mouse' or 'rat'.
Although found in a relatively small natural habitat when compared to other species of rodents, degus are prolific and thus classified as a least-concern species by IUCN. The animal may be kept as a domestic pet, though there are prohibitions on their ownership in some territories. As a pet, the degu is larger than a golden hamster but smaller than a fancy rat.
Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Common degu (revision 1335666221), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q281008 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).
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