Chinchilla

Chinchillas are crepuscular rodents, slightly larger than ground squirrels, native to the Andes mountains in South America. Along with their relatives, viscachas, they belong to the family Chinchillidae.

In their native habitat, chinchillas live in burrows or crevices in rocks. They are agile jumpers and can jump very high, up to 5 ft (1.5 m). Predators in the wild include birds of prey, skunks, felines, snakes and canines. Chinchillas have a variety of defense tactics including spraying urine and releasing fur if bitten. In the wild, chinchillas have been observed eating plants, fruits, seeds, and small insects, though this diet could irritate the digestive system of a domestic chinchilla whose diet should be primarily hay-based.

In nature, chinchillas live in social groups that resemble colonies but are properly called herds. Chinchilla females are significantly bigger than males. Chinchillas can breed any time of the year. At 111 days, their gestation period is long compared to other rodents. Due to this long pregnancy, chinchillas are born fully furred and with eyes open. Litters are usually small in number, predominately twins.

Domestic chinchillas can be kept as pets. Chinchillas are crepuscular, somewhat nocturnal and typically do not like to be disturbed during the day, which may make them less favorable as pets to some people. Chinchillas are naturally very skittish creatures and generally do not like to be held, although they can become very attached to their owners. Because of their high-strung disposition, they are not usually considered to be good pets for small children. However, chinchillas can be very friendly animals if sufficiently acclimated to human touch as kits, making them excellent pets for patient owners.

Sugar Glider

The Sugar Glider (Petaurus breviceps) is a small marsupial originally native to eastern and northern mainland Australia, New Guinea, and the Bismarck Archipelago, and introduced to Tasmania.

The Sugar Glider is around 16 to 21 cm (6.3 to 7.5 inches) in length, with a tail almost as long as the body and almost as thick as a human thumb, and weighs between 90 and 150 grams (3 to 5.3 oz). The fur is generally pearl Grey, with black and cream patches on the underbelly and black or grey ears. Other colour variations include leucistic and albino recessive traits. The tail tapers only moderately and the last quarter of it is black, often with a dark tip. The muzzle is short and rounded. Northern forms tend to be brown coloured rather than grey and, as predicted by Bergmann's Rule, smaller.

The most distinctive features of its anatomy are the twin skin membranes called patagia which extend from the fifth finger of the forelimb back to the first toe of the hind foot. These are inconspicuous when the Sugar Glider is at rest – it merely looks a little flabby – but immediately obvious when it takes flight. The membranes are used to glide between trees: when fully extended they form an aerodynamic surface the size of a large handkerchief. Membranes are also used to gather food while hunting. The membrane has a thin sheet of fur surrounding it, but it is usually pink in colour.

The gliding membranes are primarily used as an efficient way to get to food resources. They may also, as a secondary function, help the Sugar Glider escape predators like goannas, introduced foxes and cats, and the marsupial carnivores, such as quolls, the Kowari, mulgaras, and antechinuses that foxes, cats, and dingos largely supplanted. The ability to glide from tree to tree is clearly of little value with regard to the Sugar Glider's avian predators, however, in particular owls and kookaburras.

Outside Australia, the Sugar Glider is a popular domestic pet because of its lively and inquisitive nature; with plenty of attention (a minimum of 1-2 hours of daily human interaction), it bonds well to human companions. Where legal, the Sugar Glider is not difficult to breed in captivity under the right conditions.

Photos & Information obtained from wikipedia.com

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