Do chinchillas need sunlight when during the day? (When they sleep?)?

Question

Just Wondering.

Answer 1

No, they're nocturnal. In the wild they'd be hidden away from any sort of light during the day. Keeping them in the sun can also result in them becoming over heated, since anything over 80 degrees can easily kill them.

Answer 2

Chinchillas are crepuscular which means that they are active during the dawn and dusk hours in their natural habitat.  So, they are normally not in the sunlight much in nature especially midday sunlight.  I would recommend having them in an area where no direct sunlight hits their cage.  You don't want them to get too hot.

Chinchillas are many times mistakenly called nocturnal, but they are actually crepuscular as is shown in the links below.

www.reference.com/browse/crepuscular

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crepuscular

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinchillas

www.gcchinchillas.com/chininfo.php

www.answers.com/topic/crepuscular