Basic information on a range of Australian animals

Shingleback lizard (Tiliqua rugosa)
Perentie
Southern hairy-nosed wombat
Common death adder
Tasmanian devil
Bandicoot
Bilby

Tiliqua rugosa, Shingleback lizard

TAXONOMY

Family: Scincidae skinks

Genus: Tiliqua blue-tongued skinks

Species: rugosa Shingleback

Common names: Two-headed lizard, Pinecone lizard, Sleepy lizard, Boggi, Bobtail, Bobtail goanna, Stump-tailed lizard, Stumpy lizard

Characteristics: Appearance tongue is dark blue broad blunt tail similar in shape to head covered with raised scales length 34 cms (13 in)

Habitat: arid regions of southern Australia

Diet: mainly herbivorous - favour flowers, berries, succulent leaves also eats spiders, insects, snails, carrion

Reproduction: breed in spring; same pairs form each year produce 1-4 but usually 2 live young

REFERENCES

Books

Australia's Amazing Wildlife, 1985. Bay Books, Kensington NSW.
Encyclopedia of Australian Wildlife, Reader’s Digest Australia Pty Ltd, 1997. Reader’s Digest (Australia) Pty Ltd, Surrey Hills.
Wildlife Conservation, HJ Frith, 1979. Angus & Robertson, London.

Perentie

TAXONOMY

Family: Varanidae

Goannas, forked tongue, Jacobson's organs to analyse the sensations experienced by the forked tongue, long slender neck, flattened head, strong tail, powerful legs with 5 clawed toes, numerous sharp curved backward-pointing teeth

Genus: Varanus goannas

Species: giganteus Perentie

Characteristics: Appearance: up to 2.5m (8 ft) in length; second largest lizard in the world

Habitat: occurs in desert regions rocky outcrops,shelter in large burrows

Prey: insects, birds, other reptiles, mammals, carrion track by sight or by sensing prey with their tongue forage actively and also 'sit and wait' for larger prey like rabbits

Reproduction: lay eggs

REFERENCES

Australia's Amazing Wildlife, 1985. Bay Books, Kensington NSW.

Encyclopedia of Australian Wildlife, Reader’s Digest Australia Pty Ltd, 1997. Reader’s Digest (Australia) Pty Ltd, Surrey Hills.

Wildlife Conservation, HJ Frith, 1979. Angus & Robertson, London.

Southern hairy-nosed wombat

TAXONOMY

Family: Vombatidae wombats sturdy body, powerful limbs for burrowing

Genus: Lasiorhinus Hairy-nosed wombats large square nose covered with fine hair

Species: latifrons Southern Hairy-nosed wombat

Nearest relatives: L. krefftii, Vombatus ursinus, Northern Hairy-nosed wombat, Common Wombat

Characteristics:

Distribution

a few small areas in South Australia mainly on the Nullabor Plain used to be occur from the Murray River in South Australia across to south-east Western Australia
Burrows a network of extensive tunnels with up to 20 entrances shared by a number (10) wombats developed over generations of wombats any
wombat may use a number of different burrows
one of the largest animals to construct burrows; can excavate up to 2m or tunnel a night
Competition suffered in competition for food and burrowing areas with rabbits and also with farmers and graziers

Appearance

sturdy body, flattened head and rump, short powerful legs with broad paws pouch faces backwards so young don't get a face full of dirt when mother is digging
teeth have no roots; they keep growing and are continually worn down by eating
very strong; if pursued into a burrow by a dog or fox, a wombat will lift its rump and crush the attacker's skill against the roof of the burrow

Lifestyle

territorial but home ranges may overlap solitary - don't form social groups
share burrows, rubbing posts, feeding areas
spend the day in the burrow except on overcast days or during cold winters - this helps to conserve water and energy
spend two-thirds of their lives asleep in the burrow
can run 40km/hr over short distances
live up to 25 years

Senses: alert to slightest sound or unusual scent

Status: common but restricted distribution often considered a pest by farmers due to their destruction of fences designed to keep out kangaroos, rabbits, and dingoes/wild dogs

Feeding: grazing animals eating grasses cover 1-4 km per night over a 5-20 ha plot

Reproduction

births occur September to December after a gestation period of 30 days young leave the pouch at 10 months of age but stay with the mother for several months after leaving the pouch at least until weaned at 12 months
sexually mature by 2-3 years

REFERENCES

Books

Australia's Amazing Wildlife, 1985. Bay Books, Kensington NSW.
Australian Geographic Wildlife Special Edition, Australian Geographic, Terrey Hills.
Complete Book Of Australian Mammals, R Strahan (ed), 1983. Angus & Robertson Publishers, London.
Encyclopedia of Australian Wildlife, Reader’s Digest Australia Pty Ltd, 1997. Reader’s Digest (Australia) Pty Ltd, Surrey Hills.
Wildlife Conservation, HJ Frith, 1979. Angus & Robertson, London.

Links

Common Death Adder

TAXONOMY

Family: Elapidae venomous snakes, includes majority of land snakes of Australia

Genus: Acanthophis

Species: antarcticus

Nearest relatives: A. pyrrhus, A. praelongus, Desert Death Adder, Northern Death Adder

Characteristics:

Distribution: the three species of Death Adder cover most of mainland Australia the Common Death Adder occurs in cooler areas and in higher rainfall areas

Habitat

rainforest, coastal heath, sand dunes, arid grassland tend to be sedentary
stay partially hidden in leaf litter, sand, or overhanging vegetation
move around in late afternoon or at night

Appearance

short thick body with a large, triangular head and slender tail with a brightly marked tip proteroglyphous - fixed fangs at front of jaw;
pair of relatively short hollow fangs each lying in front of the upper jaw and connected at the base to a duct leading to the venom gland
mottled colouration provides excellent camouflage

Size: up to 1m (3ft) but usually about half that size

Defence: positioning of the fangs at the front enables elapids to defend themselves against larger animals by injecting venom

Method of feeding

ambush predators;
short stocky body enables them to strike quickly capture prey by twitching tail rapidly; prey attracted to grub-like lure
after striking, the Death Adder hangs on until the fast-acting postsynaptic neuotoxins take effect

Prey: lizards, small mammals, birds

Reproduction

breed in alternate years probably as a response to low feeding rates males mature at 2 years; females at about 3-4 years
young are born live; maximum litter size of about 30

Parasites: ticks

Predators: foxes, cats

Problems: cane toads prey on young Death Adders or result in the death of adults that try to eat the toads secondary effect from eating mice poisoned with strychnine

Status:some populations have been greatly reduced but still common

REFERENCES

Books

Australia's Amazing Wildlife, 1985. Bay Books, Kensington NSW.
Australian Snakes: A Natural History, R Shine, 1998. Reed New Holland, Sydney.
Dangerous Snakes of Australia, P Mirtschin & R Davis, 1995. Lansdowne Publishing, Sydney.
Encyclopedia of Australian Wildlife, Reader’s Digest Australia Pty Ltd, 1997. Reader’s Digest (Australia) Pty Ltd, Surrey Hills.
Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, HG Cogger, 1996. Reed Books, Melbourne
Snakes of Australia, P Mirtschin & R Davis, 1992. Hill of Content, Melbourne.

Links

http://www.smuggled.com/adder1.htm - look around, there are quite a few pages at this site

Tasmanian Devil

TAXONOMY

Family: Dasyuridae Dasyurids - carnivorous marsupials teeth are for biting and cutting

Genus: Sarcophilus sarco-flesh -philus lover

Species: harrisii

Common names: Tasmanian devil, native devil

Nearest relatives: native cats

Characteristics:

General: largest of the surviving carnivorous marsupials

Distribution: Tasmania; also existed on the Australian mainland before the arrival of the dingo - bones have been found in Victoria and in Arnhem Land

Habitat: dry eucalypt forests and woodlands of Tasmania; also seen around the suburbs

Appearance

thickset, heavy, and powerful; massive head relative to the body size, powerful jaws and strong teeth for crunching bones
Males: 9kg (20lbs), 65cm (25in) head and body length; tail about 25cm (10in)
Females: smaller but similar in appearance

Voice: use vocal repertoire to signal level of displeasure ranging from champing of the jaws to indicate mild aggression through a range of growls culminating in yells that end in a blood-curdling scream with widely-gaping jaws close to the rival

Disposition: somewhat belligerent, wary fight and squabble among themselves; often older animals are scarred from these encounters

Lifestyle

nocturnal, spend the day in a hollow log, cave, burrow a home range of 10-20 ha but not territorial; home ranges usually overlap
can climb trees

Mortality rates

little loss of pouch young; high juvenile mortality
live for about 6 years

Senses: acute sense of smell

Locomotion: run on all 4 legs with elevated tail; awkward slow lope not exceeding 13km/hr

Feeding

generally hunt alone; can travel 8km (5mile) a night mainly scavenge carcasses - beached fishes, cows etc; large carcasses may attract up to 6 devils
carnivorous taking possums, wallabies, wombats; young sometimes take sleeping birds; will eat any material of animal origin

Reproduction:

mate in March (autumn) gestation period of 3-4 weeks
marsupials female has a backward-opening pouch; usually produce litters of up to 4
female carries the young in the pouch for about 15 weeks when they are left in a grass-lined den; they are fully furred by this time;
lactation continues for another 15 weeks
young start leaving the den in November and by February they are weaned and independent
males disperse from their natal home range
females can breed at around 2 years

REFERENCES

Australia's Amazing Wildlife, 1985. Bay Books, Kensington NSW
Encyclopedia of Australian Wildlife, Reader’s Digest Australia Pty Ltd, 1997
Reader’s Digest (Australia) Pty Ltd, Surrey Hills
Complete Book Of Australian Mammals, R Strahan (ed), 1983
Angus & Robertson Publishers, London
Wildlife Conservation. HJ Frith. 1979. Angus & Robertson Publishers, London.

Bandicoot

TAXONOMY

FAMILY Peramelidae
GENUS	SPECIES	COMMON NAME	OTHER COMMON NAMES
(B=bandicoot)
Isodon short-nosed	auratus	Golden B	northern golden B, northern golden-backed B, windaru, wintaroo, nyulu
obesulus	Southern Brown B	short-nosed B, southern short-nosed B, brown B, quenda
macrourus	Northern Brown B	brindled B, giant brindled B, long-tailed short-nosed B, large northern B
Parmeles long-nosed	gunnii	Eastern Barred B	Tasmanian barred B, Gunn's B, striped B
bougainville	Western Barred B	barred B, eastern barred B, Shark Bay B, WA striped B, SA striped B, NSW striped B, marl, little marl, nyemmel
nasuta	Long-nosed B	none
FAMILY Peroryctlidae (Papua New Guinea bandicoots)
GENUS	SPECIES	COMMON NAME	OTHER COMMON NAMES
Echymipera	rufescens	Rufous Spiny B	spiny B, rufescent B

CHARACTERISTICS

General: rat-sized to rabbit-sized, elongated feet, coarse fur, strong forepaws, long snout, lots of pointed teeth

Lifestyle

ground dwelling generally solitary, defend territories of up to 7 hectares
active at night and rest during the day
SHORT-NOSED make nests of twigs and grass with no entrance or chamber
LONG-NOSED dig into the ground and line the nest with grasses etc.

Locomotion: run on all 4 legs, occasionally sit up on their haunches to look for predators (dingos)

Feeding: eat insects, worms, seeds, berries snout used to find food, forepaws used for digging in the leaf litter and earth for food

Reproduction

marsupials females can breed at 4 months of age, males at 5 months
prolific breeders; breed several times a year in good conditions
female has a backward-opening pouch with 4-8 teats; usually produce litters of 2-4

Distribution: all species considered together, bandicoots tend to be found around the coastline

Nearest relative: greater bilby

Status: 2 species have become extinct in the last 200 years 4 of the remaining species have experienced reductions in range and number

Size	Head/body length mm (inches)	Tail length mm (inches)
Golden Bandicoot	223 (8.8)	100 (3.9)
Long-nosed Bandicoot *	370 (14.5)	135 (5.3)
Eastern Barred Bandicoot	305 (12)	85 (3.3)
Western Barred Bandicoot	245 (9.6)	90 (3.5)
Northern Brown Bandicoot *	375 (14.7)	150 (5.9)
Southern Brown Bandicoot *	315 (12.4)	115 (4.5)

*males bigger then females

REFERENCES

Australia's Amazing Wildlife, 1985. Bay Books, Kensington NSW
Encyclopedia of Australian Wildlife
Reader’s Digest Australia Pty Ltd, 1997. Reader’s Digest (Australia) Pty Ltd, Surrey Hills.
Complete Book Of Australian Mammals, R Strahan (ed), 1983. Angus & Robertson Publishers, London.

Bilby

TAXONOMIC CLASSIFICATION

Family: Peramelidae

SubFamily: Thalacomyinae

Genus: Macrotis large eared

Species: lagotis

GENERAL

Common names: Greater Bilby, Rabbit-eared Bandicoot, Rabbit Bandicoot, Pinkie, Ninu, Walpajirri, Dalgyte

Nearest relatives: bandicoots

Size: similar to a rabbit; male 2.5 kg; female about half the male

Features: long rabbit-like ears; long nose, tail, and legs;

Habitat: mulga shrublands, spinifex grassland, mitchell grassland

Distribution: south-western Queensland, Northern Territory, north Western Australia - restricted

Status: vulnerable to extinction; some captive breeding programs; plans to reestablish a colony in national parkland near Charleville, Qld.

Food: insects and their larvae, seeds, bulbs, fruit, fungi

Lifestyle: feed at night; rest in burrows during the day; live singly or in pairs

REPRODUCTION

Frequency: 1 or 2 young in each litter; may be 4 litters in a year in favourable conditions

Sexual maturity: 6 months

REFERENCES

Encyclopedia of Australian Wildlife, Reader’s Digest Australia Pty Ltd, 1997.
Reader’s Digest (Australia) Pty Ltd, Surrey Hills. Complete Book Of Australian
Mammals, R Strahan (ed), 1983. Angus & Robertson Publishers, London.