Hiking through fertile valleys smattered with llama, alpaca and viscacha (like a chubby rabbit), flanked by centuries-old glaciers that made me feel insignificant, in the best possible way.
Unusual features of the viscacha rat include greatly enlarged auditory bullae, and the presence of numerous whiskers on the roof of the mouth behind the incisor teeth.
The impact of modern farming techniques and mining has damaged the natural habitats of indigenous species such as emu, jackrabbit, viscacha and armadillo.
