The Northern Brown Bandicoot (Isoodon macrourus), a marsupial

Marsupial

Marsupials are an infraclass of mammals, characterized by giving birth to relatively undeveloped young. Close to 70% of the 334 extant species occur in Australia, New Guinea, and nearby islands, with the remaining 100 found in the Americas, primarily in South America, but with thirteen in Central...

 species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

, is a bandicoot

Bandicoot

Bandicoots are a group of about 20 species of small to medium-sized, terrestrial marsupial omnivores in the order Peramelemorphia.- Etymology :...

 found only on the northern and eastern coasts of Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 and nearby islands, mainly Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea

Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...

. It is not, however, found far inland.

Physical description

These bandicoots can be set apart from other marsupials by two traits. They are both polyprotodont (i.e., several pairs of lower front teeth) and syndactylous. I. macrourus has typical body and tail lengths of 40 centimetre, respectively. On average it weighs 1200 gram. This marsupial has a thick harsh coat but is not spiny. The dorsal pelage is light brown in appearance with speckled black patterns throughout. On the ventral surface it is solid white. This bandicoot also has short, rounded ears and a short nose. One can easily mistake Northern Brown Bandicoot for Isoodon obesulus, the Southern Brown Bandicoot

Southern Brown Bandicoot

The Southern Brown Bandicoot , also known as the Quenda from the local Noongar tongue from South Western Australia, is a short-nosed bandicoot found mostly in southern Australia....

. The two species differ in both size, with I. macrourus larger, and regional locality, in that I. obesulus are found only on the southern coastline of Australia.

The male is typically 5 – longer and about 0.5 kilograms (1.1 lb) heavier than the female.

Ecology

The populations of I. macrourus live in two different habitats: one during the dry season and the other during the wet season. During the dry season, this species lives in thick vegetation consisting of tall weeds, small trees, and dense shrubs. This probably occurs because of the sparse food supply that can be found. During the wet season though, I. macrourus "come out" and roam open grasslands where a more abundant food source exists.

The Northern Brown Bandicoot makes individual nests or homes on the ground consisting of simple mounds of hay and twigs that are well camouflaged and waterproof. The inside is hollow and large enough for just the single bandicoot. Some bandicoots use hollowed out tree trunks or abandoned rabbit dens for shelter. In general, however, I. macrourus shows a strong preference for homes in areas of low ground cover.

I. macrourus is omnivorous. It eats insect

Insect

Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...

s, earthworm

Earthworm

Earthworm is the common name for the largest members of Oligochaeta in the phylum Annelida. In classical systems they were placed in the order Opisthopora, on the basis of the male pores opening posterior to the female pores, even though the internal male segments are anterior to the female...

s, berries

Berry

The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....

, and grass

Grass

Grasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns ...

 seed

Seed

A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...

s. Sometimes when food is scarce, the female bandicoot will eat her young. This marsupial forages alone during the night and has a keen sense of smell. This allows it to find food either laying in the open or buried underground. Hunting at night, however, also has its consequences. The bandicoot is prime prey for many nocturnal cat

Cat

The cat , also known as the domestic cat or housecat to distinguish it from other felids and felines, is a small, usually furry, domesticated, carnivorous mammal that is valued by humans for its companionship and for its ability to hunt vermin and household pests...

s, fox

Fox

Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...

es, and owl

Owl

Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...

s found in Australia.

Life history

The Northern Brown Bandicoot diligently marks and retains its territory. It has scent glands on the ears, mouth, pouch, and cloaca. This solitary marsupial is aggressive only towards others of its species. If a bandicoot is startled in its nesting site, it will flee. Hardly ever will I. macrourus defend itself unless two males confront one another over territorial rights. Then, either a male is killed or one male becomes subordinate to the other and avoids confrontation. The subordinate male also forfeits to the dominant male all sexual relations with local females. Bandicoots are not social animals and do not live in groups, with the exception of mother and her young.

The Northern Brown Bandicoot breeds throughout the year. An average litter consists of 2 to 4 young. Being marsupials, the newborns are naked and immature and thus undergo extensive development within the mother's pouch. The gestation period (12.5 days) is the shortest recorded for any mammal. Bandicoots are also the only metatheria

Metatheria

Metatheria is a grouping within the animal class Mammalia. First proposed by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1880, it is nearly synonymous with the earlier taxon Marsupialia though it is slightly wider since it also contains the nearest fossil relatives of marsupial mammals.The earliest known...

n marsupials that have placenta

Placenta

The placenta is an organ that connects the developing fetus to the uterine wall to allow nutrient uptake, waste elimination, and gas exchange via the mother's blood supply. "True" placentas are a defining characteristic of eutherian or "placental" mammals, but are also found in some snakes and...

s similar to eutheria

Eutheria

Eutheria is a group of mammals consisting of placental mammals plus all extinct mammals that are more closely related to living placentals than to living marsupials . They are distinguished from noneutherians by various features of the feet, ankles, jaws and teeth...

n mammals. Juveniles are weaned at 60 days post partum. By this time, the marsupial young are capable of sustaining endothermy on their own. I. macrourus have a lifespan of approximately two years.

Female bandicoots produce between 8 and 11 litters in their lifetime. Male bandicoots don't play a significant role in the care of juvenile I. macrourus.

Conservation status

Over the past century, populations of I. macrourus have decreased after the Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an introduction of rabbit

Rabbit

Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...

s and livestock

Livestock

Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...

into Australia. This dramatically heightened the direct competition for food and habitat. Bandicoot populations further suffered after the introduction of the fox and cat, both predators of small animals.