Western barred bandicoot

Western barred bandicoot[1] 
Conservation status
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Infraclass: Marsupialia
Order: Peramelemorphia
Family: Peramelidae
Genus: Perameles
Species: P. bougainville
Binomial name
Perameles bougainville
Quoy & Gaimard, 1824
Western Barred Bandicoot range
(red — native, pink — reintroduced)

The western barred bandicoot (Perameles bougainville), also known as the marl, is a small species of bandicoot found in Australia. It was once widespread across southern Australia from Western Australia to central New South Wales, but it is now found on Bernier, Dorre and Faure islands in Shark Bay, Western Australia,[3][4] and in captive populations on the mainland including at Barna Mia in Dryandra Woodland.[5]

The western barred bandicoot is much smaller than its relative the eastern barred bandicoot (Perameles gunnii), and is darker in its colouring, which is a grizzled brown. It measures about 1.5 feet (46 cm) in length.[6] It has two "bars" across its rump and has a short, tapered tail.[6] It is a solitary and crepuscular hunter, eating insects, spiders, and worms and occasionally tubers and roots.[6] When the bandicoot feels threatened, it typically leaps into the air and then burrows to safety.[6]

This species is currently being re-introduced to nearby mainland areas of Western Australia, where predators such as the red fox are the subject of control programs.[3] It has also been successfully reintroduced into the Arid Recovery Reserve at Roxby Downs in South Australia.

References

Wikispecies has information related to: Perameles bougainville
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Perameles bougainville.
  1. ↑ Groves, C. P. (2005). "Order Peramelemorphia". In Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.). Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 39. ISBN 978-0-8018-8221-0. OCLC 62265494.
  2. ↑ Friend, T. & Richards, J. (2008). Perameles bougainville. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved 28 December 2008. Database entry includes justification for why this species is listed as endangered
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Menkhorst, Peter (2001). A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia. Oxford University Press. p. 78. ISBN 9780195508703.
  4. ↑ Flannery, Tim (2005). Country: a continent, a scientist & a kangaroo. ISBN 1-920885-76-5.
  5. ↑ http://www.dec.wa.gov.au/parks-and-recreation/key-attractions/dryandra-woodland/barna-mia-animal-sanctuary.html
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Ellis, Richard (2004). No Turning Back: The Life and Death of Animal Species. New York: Harper Perennial. p. 226. ISBN 0-06-055804-0.

External links