SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - On this week’s Wild Wednesday, Great Plains Zoo Education Specialist Elizabeth Mansell teaches us about chinchillas!

“I have right here, Lilly, our chinchilla. She’s 11 years old, so she’s kind of up there, middle-agedish,” said Mansell.

“So these guys are known for that really soft coat. These guys live in the Andes Mountains in the wild. So this is basically their winter coat year-round. Something really interesting about that coat and what makes it so soft is that they have 60 hairs per follicle, whereas we humans usually have one to two. So, they just have a lot of densely-packed fur to keep them nice and warm in the mountains,” said Mansell.

Chinchillas are in the rodent family, but are very popular pets.

They have large ears to help them hear

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