Lesueur brush kangaroo
| Lesueur brush kangaroo | ||||||||||||
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Old depiction of the Lesueur brush kangaroo from "The mammals in images based on nature with descriptions" by August Goldfuß and Johann Christian von Schreber . |
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| Bettongia lesueur | ||||||||||||
| ( Quoy & Gaimard , 1824) |
The Lesueur brush kangaroo ( Bettongia lesueur ) is a marsupial from the family of potoroidae (Potoroidae), which was once widespread in central, southern and southwestern Australia. Today it only occurs on a few islands off the coast of Western Australia and in some fenced protected areas.
Appearance
The Lesueur brush kangaroo reaches a head body length of 28 to 36 cm, has a 21 to 25.5 cm long tail and weighs 0.68 to 1 kg. Males are generally larger than females, and Barrow Island animals are significantly smaller than those of Bernier Island and Dorre Island . The Lesueur brush kangaroo is stocky, with a short snout and yellowish brown in color. The back is darker, the belly side is lighter. The head and tail are often more brownish. The relatively short, thick tail is dark on its upper side, the tip of the tail is white in some specimens. The skin immediately around the eyes is hairless and rosy. The short ears are pink on the inside, hairy on the outside and darker at the rounded tips than at their base.
distribution
The Lesueur brush kangaroo was once widespread in central, southern, and southwestern Australia. Remaining stocks are now only found on the islands of Barrow, Bernier and Dorre off the coast of Western Australia. There are also some populations on islands and in fenced protected areas where the animals have been released by humans. These are the islands of Faure and Heirisson Island in Shark Bay , Boodie Island south of Barrow Island and the Scotia Wildlife Sanctuary in New South Wales , the Arid Recovery Reserve near Roxby Downs in South Australia.
Habitat and way of life
The Lesueur brush kangaroo lives in deserts, semi-deserts, bushland and open forests up to heights of 300 meters. The diet changes depending on the season. The animals are not dependent on open water to meet their moisture requirements. The Lesueur brush kangaroo is more active at night and more sociable than other rat kangaroos and spends the day in underground burrows that it has dug itself. These can range from simple to very complex and extensive. This depends on the topography and structure of the soil. The burrows have at least two entrances, but they can also have many. Simple nests are created within the burrows. The animals feed mainly on roots they dug themselves, tubers of various plants, but also mushrooms, seeds, leaves, stems, invertebrates and carrion.
Females have a single cub per birth and give birth up to twice a year. The gestation period is 21 days. After birth, the young animal remains in the pouch for about 4 months and is weaned at 5.5 to 6 months of age. Females become sexually mature at 7 months of age and males are 14 months old.
Hazards and protective measures
Once widespread in Central, South and Southwest Australia, the Lesueur Brush Kangaroo is now extinct on mainland Australia and on Dirk Hartog Island . The decline of the species began in the middle of the 19th century in the southeast of the distribution area and then continued further and further west. The last specimens were sighted in southwest Australia in the 1940s and in central Australia in the 1960s. The main reason for the extinction is the reenactment by red foxes and house cats , the conversion of their habitat into pastures and arable land and the food competition from rabbits . The population of animals living on the predator-free islands and in the fenced protected areas is between 300 and 3400 animals (about 3400 on Barrow, 650 on Bernier, 1000 on Dorre, 500 in the Arid Recovery protected area and 300 in the Scotia Wildlife Sanctuary). The stock is relatively stable.
etymology
The name of the Lesueur brush kangaroo, originally described by Jean René Constant Quoy and Joseph Paul Gaimard under the name Hypsiprymnus lesueur , is dedicated to the French naturalist, explorer and painter Charles-Alexandre Lesueur .
supporting documents
- ↑ a b c d e f Mark Eldridge & Greta Frankham: Family Potoroidae (Bettongs and Potoroos). Pages 625-626 in Don E. Wilson , Russell A. Mittermeier : Handbook of the Mammals of the World - Volume 5. Monotremes and Marsupials. Lynx Editions, 2015, ISBN 978-84-96553-99-6
- ↑ Bettongia lesueur in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016.3. Posted by: Richards, J., Morris, K. & Burbidge, A., 2008. Retrieved January 19, 2017.
- ↑ Jean René Constant Quoy, Joseph Paul Gaimard: Voyage autour du monde, entrepris par ordre du roi, sur le Ministère et Conforménent aux instruction de S. Exc. M. Le Vicomte de Bouchage Secrétaire au Département de la Marine. Exécuté sur les corvettes de SM l'Uranie et la Physicienne, pendant les années 1817, 1818, 1819 et 1820 . Zoology. Pillet Ainé, Paris 1824 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
