A massive chinchilla rat, member of the family Abrocomidae, was once thought to have gone extinct. But a recent study around the ancient Incan city of Machu Picchu has discovered the rat and proved that the species is still alive.

Horacio Zeballos, the curator of Mammalogy at the Museum de Arequipa and Gerardo Ceballos, and other colleagues were conducting a field study in South America when they found the sample of chinchilla rat.

Researchers had begun the field study in 2012. During the research in Incan city Machu Picchu, the team of researchers found seven new species, including four new kinds of frogs, a lizard and an aquatic rodent. The discovery of cat-sized chinchilla rat is the newest by the team.

According to researchers, the species was thought to be extinct even before Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro plundered the city.

Zeballos said the discovery of Machu Picchu's chinchilla rat and other species will help the research team in protecting the native forests.

Zeballos said, "Both the National Park and the Historic Sanctuary are relatively well-managed. They have staff and some infrastructure. It seems that the Federal Government has become more interested in reducing deforestation in the National Park and the Sanctuary in recent years".

According to Zeballos, the team had headed to Incan city Machu Picchu with an expectation to find the huge chinchilla rat.

In 2009, guards of the park were surprised when they found a large rodent that fits chinchilla's description. According to guards, the mammal was injured, and after nursing, they released the creature into the wild.

The IUCN Red List shows that chinchilla was thought to be extinct because it was not found in any of previous ecological surveys. According to the list, only two skulls of the species dating back to the 1500s proved they had ever even existed.