---
title: "Common Degu"
description: "Octodon degus — Mamíferos. The common degu (Octodon degus; ), or, historically, the degu, is a small hystricomorpha rodent endemic to the Chilean matorral ecoregion of central Chile."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/pt/animal/common-degu
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Common Degu

> Octodon degus — Mamíferos. The common degu (Octodon degus; ), or, historically, the degu, is a small hystricomorpha rodent endemic to the Chilean matorral ecoregion of central Chile.

- Scientific name: *Octodon degus*
- Category: `mammals` (Mamíferos)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 540
- Wikidata: [Q281008](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q281008)
- iNaturalist taxon: [45920](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/45920)

## Names

- en: Common Degu
- de: Gewöhnlicher Degu
- es: Degu
- nl: Degoe
- pl: Koszatniczka

## Countries with the most observations

CL (370), RU (4)

## Summary

The common degu (Octodon degus; ), or, historically, the degu, is a small hystricomorpha rodent endemic to the Chilean matorral ecoregion of central Chile. The name degu on its own indicates either the entire genus Octodon or, more commonly, just the common degu. Common degus belong to the parvorder Caviomorpha of the infraorder Hystricognathi, along with the chinchilla and guinea pig. The word degu comes from the Mapuche word dewü, meaning 'mouse' or 'rat'.
Although found in a relatively small natural habitat when compared to other species of rodents, degus are prolific and thus classified as a least-concern species…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_degu

## Photo

![Common Degu](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/common-degu/medium.jpg)

Photo: Philip Precey · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/251649935

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/common-degu?lang=pt` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).