page_title: Wildlife of Chile
section_title: Marine molluscs
hierarchical_section_title: Wildlife of Chile / Fauna / Marine molluscs
caption_attribution_description: English: Humboldt squid (Dosidicus gigas) swarm around Tiburon, possibly attracted to its lights. Several of the large (about 1- 2 meter, or 3-6 foot) animals clouded the water with greenish-gold ink.
context_page_description: The wildlife of Chile encompasses a diverse range of animals and plants, a condition is attributed to the country's slender and elongated shape, which spans a wide range of latitude, and also its altitude, ranging from the windswept coastline of the Pacific coast on the west to northern Andes to the sub-Antarctic, high Andes mountains in the east. There are many distinct ecosystems.
  Chile, often called "The spine of South America", has 100 protected areas covering a total area of 14.5 million hectares in 36 National parks, 49 National Reserves, and 15 National Monuments. In the southern part of Chile, 50 percent of the flora is endemic which is a unique feature in the world. Lapageria rosea is the national flower, Andean condor, is the national bird, and taruca or South Andean huemul, is the national animal of Chile. Legally, wildlife in Chile is res nullius.
context_section_description: The marine molluscs of Chile number 1070 species, including gastropods such as limpets, snails and sea slugs; bivalves such as clams, oysters, mussels and scallops; and cephalopods such as octopuses, squids and cuttlefish.
caption: Humboldt squid (Dosidicus gigas)
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