Australian Animals, Mammals and Marsupials

This page contains details and photos of Australian animals including marsupials such as kangaroo, wallaby, wombat, koala, echidna and Tasmanian Devil.

Click on thumbnail image to see a larger, higher resolution photo.

Red Kangaroos

Megaleia rufa

The red kangaroos live on the inland plains and are the largest of all kangaroos and wallabies. An adult male can reach 1.8m high when standing up.

Kangaroos live in a family group called a 'mob'. Males are called 'bucks' and females are called 'does'. Baby kangaroos, known as 'joeys', are born blind like many other animals then make their way to the pouch where they live until out-growing it.

Does make good mothers and are protective of their young in the wild. If a mob is threatened, a doe will hide her joey in the bush so she can keep up with the other kangaroos making a getaway. When she thinks it is safe, the doe will return to collect her baby.

Parma Wallaby

Macropus parma

The Parma wallaby is a small marsupial with a body length of 45-55cm, not including the tail which is usually the same length again. It weighs around 5kg and has a thick, brownish-grey fur above and light grey fur ventrally.

They are only found in rainforests and sclerophyll forests in New South Wales from the Watagan Mountains in the South to the Gibraltar Range in the North.

Parma wallabies were thought to have become extinct a century ago until being discovered again in the 1970s, South West of Lake Macquarie, NSW.

Echidna

Spiny ant eater. Tachyglossus aculeatus

Female Echidnas only lay one egg and suckle their young in a pouch. When anything threatens them, they roll up into spiny ball or rapidly dig themselves into the ground.

Echidnas live on ants, insects and termites and break the nest open with sharp claws before using its sticky tongue to collect the contents. This one was digging into an ant nest beside a road, but took off for the bush when we got close.

They are no relation to porcupines (which are rodents) found in Europe or America.

Dingo

Canis familiaris. (Note that the Dingo is not a marsupial)

The Dingo is the only dog native to Australia. They are more wolf-like than dog; they do not bark and communicate by howling.

The Dingos once covered almost the whole of the mainland, but now usually only seen wild in isolated rural areas. Originally banned from keeping in captivity they are slowly becoming popular as a domestic pet. This photo of a healthy bitch shows their broad head, sleek profile and typical tawny-yellow coat.

Dingos were used to breed Australian Cattle Dogs. They are popular as a working dog for beef producers because of their natural instincts and cunning ability to snap at the heels of cattle without geting kicked. Hence their nick name of 'Blue Heeler'.

Koala

Phascolarctos cinereus.

Often incorrectly referred to as a bear, koalas are pouched marsupials and only eat the leaves of certain eucalyptus trees in which they live. They rear their young in a rear opening pouch for six months then carry them on their back.

Although they look friendly and cuddly, koalas are rarely kept as pets. They are nocturnal and sometimes sleep for up to twenty hours per day. Koalas don't drink, but they have the habit of peeing on anyone who picks them up. Maybe that is their way of telling us to leave them alone.

Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby

Petrogale xanthopus

Also known as the ring-tailed rock wallaby, it was once widespread throughout Australia. It is now only found in a few isolated rocky outcrops in New South Wales, South Australia and parts of Queensland.

Rock wallabies grow to about 60 centimeters body length plus a similar length tail. They are sure footed and very agile, able to leap long distances between rocks and boulders.

Loss of habitat is one of the main reasons why these beautiful little creatures are disappearing. Other than shooters, their main predators are the Wedge Tail Eagle, fox and dogs.

Wombat

Vombatus hirsutus. * "Sebastian"

The common Wombat is found throughout the coastal and mountian regions of south-eastern Australia. Several species existed in other areas including the Bass Straight islands, but many are now extinct.

Wombats eat grasses, bark and roots and live in burrows usually several metres long. They are not aggressive and sometimes kept as a pet, but difficult to keep in an enclosure because of their strength and powefull claws.

* Thanks to John Kosseck for the original photograph of Sebastian who was saved by John after a bushfire and later released.

Tasmanian Devil

Sarcophilus harrisii

A fearsome looking native hyena-like animal once found throughout the South Eastern mainland is now unique to Tasmania. It belongs to a group of marsupials called 'dasyurids' that include the Tasmanian Wolf and the Marsupial Mouse.

Tasmanian Devils are carnivorous and eat carrion and small game such as lizards and birds. They have very powerful jaws and can shear through the leg bone of a kangaroo or a person's arm.

They are considered too dangerous to keep as pets and are better left alone. Tasmanian Devils suffer badly from skin cancer around the face and a program is under way to breed them in the Barrington Tops area of the Hunter Valley in an attempt to prevent infection.