Tasmanian Pademelon
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| Thylogale billardierii (Desmarest, 1822) |
As the name suggests, the Tasmanian Pademelon (Thylogale billardierii), also known as the Rufous-bellied Pademelon or Red-bellied Pademelon, is the pademelon found in Tasmania — a large island to the south of mainland Australia. Tasmania's climate is considerably cooler than that on the mainland, and so all of its creatures are noticeably furrier than their cousins found on the continent.
The Tasmanian Pademelon is a mostly nocturnal animal, feeding on a wide variety of food from grass to some nectar-bearing flowers.[3] It is found in patches of dense vegetation, usually near to open areas, including rainforest, sclerophyll forest and scrubland.[3]
They are abundant to the point of being culled occasionally (along with other wallabies) to reduce competition for grass with the farmed animals.
[edit] References
- ^ Groves, Colin (16 November 2005). in Wilson, D. E., and Reeder, D. M. (eds): Mammal Species of the World, 3rd edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, 69. ISBN 0-801-88221-4.
- ^ Australasian Marsupial & Monotreme Specialist Group (1996). Thylogale billardierii. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006.
- ^ a b Menkhorst, Peter (2001). A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia. Oxford University Press, 134.
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