Arboreal locomotion small branches, as they may wrap too far around and prick the animal's own paw. Adhesion is an alternative to claws, which works best on smooth surfaces. Wet adhesion is common in tree frogs and arboreal salamanders, and functions either by suction or by capillary adhesion. Dry adhesion is best typified by the specialized toes of geckos, which use van der Waals forces to adhere to many substrates, even glass. Frictional gripping is used by primates, relying upon hairless fingertips. Squeezing the branch between the fingertips generates a frictional force that holds the animal's hand to the branch. However, this
Asháninka arboreal chinchilla rat Asháninka arboreal chinchilla rat The Asháninka arboreal chinchilla rat ("Cuscomys ashaninka") is a large species of chinchilla rats from the Andes of far northern Cusco in Peru. It was first scientifically described in 1999. The first specimen of this species was discovered by Dr. Louise Emmons, a researcher of the Smithsonian Institution from Washington, D.C., who found it by chance while climbing in the Vilcabamba Mountains near Machu Picchu. Emmons named the genus after the city of Cusco, and she named the species for the Asháninka people who live in Peru. The animal has grey fur, with a white nose