9. Uspallata Chinchilla Rat Abrocoma uspallata French: Abrocome d'Uspallata / German: Uspallata-Chinchillaratte / Spanish: Rata chinchilla de Uspallata Taxonomy. Abrocoma uspallata Braun & Mares, 2002, “Argentina: Mendoza Province: Quebrada de la Vena, ca. 7 km SSE of the village of Uspallata, 32°39.405’S, 69°20.970°'W, 1,880 + 150 m.” Abrocoma uspallata is one of six species in the “ A. cinerea complex.” J. K. Braun and M. A. Mares in 1996 made detailed descriptions of morphology and habitat of the “Mendozan Chinchilla Rat” in Uspallata, and they described that population as a new species in 2002. Monotypic. Distribution. WC Argentina (Mendoza), in the Sierras de Uspallata at elevations of 1880-2136 m. Descriptive notes. Head-body 176 mm, tail 112-164 mm, ear 26-30 mm, hindfoot 28-31 mm; weight 141-174 g. Upper parts of the Uspallata Chinchilla Rat are grayish brown, and under parts are washed with white. Tail is sharply bicolored, grayish brown above and white below. Ears are pinkish at base and gray distally. Forefeet are white above, hindfeet dusky above, and all feet have pink soles. Auditory tympanic bullae are extremely inflated and nearly touch ventro-anteriorly, and rostrum is extremely narrow. Greatest length of skull is 42:5-56 mm. There are two sets of hard, shiny, backwarddirected, tooth-like denticles on midline of palate anterior to cheekteeth. Tongue has a horny proximal pad, separated by a constriction from a smooth distal pad. Head is large and round, with a peculiar liquid-filled subcutaneous sac that surrounds cranium. Habitat. Arid Monte Desert of the pre-Andean foothills at elevations above 1880 m (mean annual rainfall of ¢.150 mm), with grasses (Stipa, Poaceae), composites (Gaillardia and Trichocline, Asteraceae), herbs (Atriplex undulata, Amaranthaceae), and shrubs such as Bulnesia retama, Larrea divaricata, and L. cunefolia (all Zygophyllaceae), Verbena (Verbenaceae), Baccharis (Asteraceae), and Lycium sp. (Solanaceae). The Uspallata Chinchilla Rat occurs in areas of rocky gulches and cliffs, where it occupiesfissures 5-10 m up on rock faces. Food and Feeding. The Uspallata Chinchilla Rat is a specialist herbivore that feeds on leaves of Lycium and Schinus (Anacardiaceae) and Larrea (Zygophyllaceae), based on a small sample. Breeding. There is no information available for this species. Activity patterns. There is little specific information for this species, but the Uspallata Chinchilla Ratis probably diurnal, with an early morning activity peak. Movements, Home range and Social organization. Uspallata Chinchilla Rats nest in crevices among rock piles on sides of ravines and in cavity systems with multiple holes. They occupied crevices in south-western facing slopes that averaged 322 m apart. Massive black or reddish latrines of crystallized urine and feces accumulate on rock piles below fissures inhabited by Uspallata Chinchilla Rats. Status and Conservation. Classified as Data Deficient on The IUCN Red List. The Uspallata Chinchilla Rat is apparently rare where it was originally collected near Uspallata, Argentina, and only a few specimens are known. The area has extensive human activity that could represent a current or future conservation threat. Bibliography. Braun & Mares (1996, 2002), Taraborelli et al. (2011).

Published as part of Don E. Wilson, Thomas E. Lacher, Jr & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2016, Abrocomidae, pp. 488-497 in Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 6 Lagomorphs and Rodents I, Barcelona :Lynx Edicions on page 497, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.6581970