Bilchbeutler

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Bilchbeutler
Cercartetus nanus

Cercartetus nanus

Systematics
without rank: Synapsids (Synapsida)
Class : Mammals (mammalia)
Subclass : Marsupials (Marsupialia)
Superordinate : Australidelphia
Order : Diprotodontia
Family : Bilchbeutler
Scientific name
Burramyidae
Broom , 1898
Genera

The Bilchbeutler are a family from the marsupial order of the Diprotodontia . They take their name from their resemblance to the dormouse , a family of rodents that includes the dormouse . The family includes five types.

distribution

Bilchbeutler occur throughout southern and eastern Australia and New Guinea .

description

Bilchbeutler outwardly resembles rodents . Their fur is gray or brown on top and lighter on the underside. The tail, which is longer than the body, is hairless except at the root and serves as a grasping organ. The feet each end in five fingers, the first toe of the hind paws can be opposed . Bilchbeutler reach a head body length of 7 to 13 centimeters and a weight of up to 50 g.

Way of life

Apart from the Bergbilchbeutler , which mostly lives on the ground, the Bilchbeutler are primarily tree dwellers. With their prehensile tails and paws suitable for grasping, they skillfully climb through the branches. They are nocturnal, during the day they retreat to a nest. This nest can be built by yourself, sometimes they also move into an abandoned bird's nest.

The most outstanding feature is that bilchbeutler is the only Australian marsupial able to hibernate . (In all marsupials, hibernation is only reported in the American Chiloé opossum .) For this purpose, the tail root grows to store fat beforehand.

food

Bilchbeutler are omnivores. In addition to seeds, fruits, leaves and other plant material, their menu also includes worms, insects and their larvae, as well as small vertebrates.

Reproduction

Bilchbeutler have a well-developed pouch with four or six teats that opens forward. The time of birth depends on the habitat: while the species living in the mountains only give birth in spring, the species in warmer areas can give birth all year round. After a short gestation period, one to eight cubs are born and, like many marsupials, continue to grow in their mother's pouch. The young animals leave the pouch at three to four weeks, at two to three months they are weaned and after 12 to 15 months they become sexually mature.

Bilchbeutler have a life expectancy of four to six years.

Eastern dwarf bilchbuckler, Pilliga Forest, New South Wales

Systematics

  • The Bergbilchbeutler ( Burramys parvus ) lives in a small area in southeastern Australia.
  • The four types of the sleeping bag ( Cercartetus ) are distributed over Australia and New Guinea.

literature

  • Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World . Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999 ISBN 0801857899

Web links

Commons : Burramyidae  - Collection of images, videos and audio files