Rodent similar to a mouse. It has a tail with long hairs in the form of a paintbrush at the end. Its head is large with very developed ears and eyes. Its fur is not silky but rather firm, of a yellowish brown color on the back and of white in the ventral part. It has diurnal habits and settles colonies of hundreds of individuals underground, though the family group is made of a male and three females. It feeds from roots, barks, microflora and seeds of hawthorn. They escape from the heat, thus avoiding feeding in the afternoon.

Family: Octodontidae

Distribution: Between Huasco (3rd Region) and Curicó (7th Region), from sea level to 1,800 m. in altitude.

Habitat: Lives in galleries protected by bushes of hawthorn, Lithraea caustica or "quilo".