Cape York rock kangaroo
| Cape York rock kangaroo | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Petrogale coenensis | ||||||||||||
| Eldridge & Close , 1992 |
The Cape York rock kangaroo ( Petrogale coenensis ) is a little researched kangaroo species from the genus of rock kangaroos ( Petrogale ).
features
The Cape York rock kangaroo belongs to a group of seven very similar rock kangaroo species in eastern Queensland , which can almost only be distinguished by chromosomal or genetic characteristics. The head-trunk length is 540 to 565 mm for the males and 440 mm for the females, the tail length 500 to 540 mm for the males and 470 mm for the females. In males, the head length is 120 mm, the ear length 58 mm, the arm length 100 mm, the hind leg length 190 to 210 mm, the foot length 152 to 155 mm and the weight 5 kg. The females reach a weight of 4.2 kg. The head length is 105 mm, the ear length 54 mm, the arm length 84 mm, the hind leg length 197 mm and the foot length 135 mm. The top is brown, the bottom is gray to light brown. A white or yellowish-brown stripe runs along the flanks. A dark spot can be seen behind the arms. There is a light stripe on the cheeks. The area of the head above is darker. The arms are quite light, but the fingers are black. The karyotype formula is 2n = 22. The centromere lies between the middle and the end of chromosome four. All autosomes are acrocentric .
distribution
The Cape York rock kangaroo is only known from three locations on the Cape York Peninsula in east Queensland , including the region of the Mungkan Kandju National Park in the central-east of the peninsula between the Musgrave River and the Roscoe River.
Habitat and way of life
The Cape York rock kangaroo inhabits rocky outcrops, rocky gullies, and rocky slopes usually within open woodland. It is predominantly nocturnal and feeds on grasses.
status
Since its first description in 1992, the Cape York rock kangaroo has been described as rare. However, four new populations were discovered by 2008 and the species was first photographed in 2011. The IUCN lists the Cape York rock kangaroo on the early warning list (near threatened).
literature
- Peter Menkhorst, Frank Knight: A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia . Oxford University Press, 2001, ISBN 978-0-19-557395-4 , pp. 130 .
Web links
- Petrogale coenensis in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2011. Posted by: Winter, J., Burnett, S. & Martin, R., 2008. Accessed November 1, 2011th
- Sarah Clarke: New frog species found in Cape York. ABC.net.au, May 20, 2011, accessed November 1, 2011 (with the first photo of the Cape York rock kangaroo).