Banded rabbit kangaroo
| Banded rabbit kangaroo | ||||||||||||
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Banded rabbit kangaroo ( Lagostrophus fasciatus ), |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the subfamily | ||||||||||||
| Lagostrophinae | ||||||||||||
| Prideaux & Warburton , 2010 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Lagostrophus | ||||||||||||
| Thomas , 1897 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Lagostrophus fasciatus | ||||||||||||
| ( Péron & Lesueur , 1807) |
The banded rabbit kangaroo ( Lagostrophus fasciatus ) is a species of marsupial from the kangaroo family (Macropodidae). It has superficial similarities with the rabbit kangaroos of the genus Lagorchestes , but the two genera are not closely related.
description
Banded rabbit kangaroos are among the smaller kangaroos with a head body length of 40 to 45 centimeters and a weight of 1.3 to 2 kilograms. Their long, soft fur is gray in color, and some black horizontal stripes run down their backs. The muzzle is pointed and hairless, the ears are relatively short. The long tail is hairy throughout. As with most kangaroos, the rear legs are significantly larger and stronger than the front legs. It owes the name "rabbit kangaroo" to its rabbit-like movements.
distribution and habitat
At the time of the arrival of the Europeans in Australia , this species still lived in large parts of southern Western Australia , fossil finds are also known from other regions of Australia. It was last sighted on the mainland in 1906 and is considered extinct there, today the species only exists on two small islands ( Bernier and Dorre Island Nature Reserve ) off the west coast of Australia. Their habitat are bushy thickets.
Way of life
Banded rabbit kangaroos live together in groups and are nocturnal, during the day they sleep in the thick undergrowth. At night they go in search of food, for which they often create beaten paths through the bushes. Their diet consists of various plants, including grasses and fruits.
threat
The reasons for the extinction on the mainland lie in the destruction of their habitat for the creation of pastures, in the food competition by introduced rabbits and in the pursuit by introduced foxes . The species is strictly protected on the two islands, but the population is subject to fluctuations. The IUCN lists the species as endangered ( vulnerable ).
Systematics
The banded rabbit kangaroo differs significantly from all other kangaroos in its tooth structure and has long been considered the only recent representative of the subfamily Sthenurinae , a once species-rich group of kangaroos. Today, however, it is placed in its own subfamily, that of the Lagostrophinae.
literature
- ↑ Prideaux, GJ and Warburton, NM (2010), 'An osteology-based appraisal of the phylogeny and evolution of kangaroos and wallabies (Macropodidae: Marsupialia)', Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 159 (4), 954-87. doi : 10.1111 / j.1096-3642.2009.00607.x
- Ronald M. Nowak: Walker's Mammals of the World . Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999 ISBN 0-8018-5789-9
Web links
- Lagostrophus fasciatus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2006. Posted by: Australasian Marsupial & Monotreme Specialist Group, 1996. Retrieved on 11 May, 2006.