Lions and Tigers and Bilbies oh my!

Many of you may know, that I am not an animal person. Puppies and kittens, seals and penguins don't do it for me. But one of the major attractions in Perth is the Perth Zoo. It has been on my list of places to visit since arriving and have bussed, ran, ridden past it several times. So when I had the opportunity to go, tourist-blogging-American Erin couldn't say no.

I had always thought zoos have mostly the same animals. You've got your elephants, zebras (pronounced zee-bras by me, but zeh-bras by the silly people over here), lions, tigers, and bears. Some colorful birds, monkeys and even some meerkats and orangutans (which Perth is famous for).

Well, Australian animals are on another level. Yes, there were those typical animals, but this is a continent of Australia. Approximately 140 marsupials, or 70 percent of marsupials worldwide, live in Australia and are found nowhere else in the world.

And there were the token koalas and kanagroos in the kangaroo walkabout (just like in South Carolina).

But there were lots more native Australian animals that I had never seen. Most of these animals are nocturnal, and are thus in the nocturnal (read: dark) room at the zoo. This means it was tricky to take pictures, but the zoo has this fantastic website with additional fact sheets for all it's animals. As we walked through the exhibit, they all seemed to be a varied size of kangaroo. First of all, there are kanagaroos, wallabies and wallaroos.

Bilby

 

Bilbies have long, soft, blue-grey fur; large rabbit-like ears that help dispel heat, and a long, pointed muzzle.  And instead of the Easter Bunny, Australian children get their Easter baskets from the Easter Bilby.

Chuditch

 

The Western Quoll, or Chuditch (a Nyoongar name), is Western Australia’s largest carnivorous marsupial. Because it's oh so big.

Dibbler

Dibblers are crepuscular which means they are most active at dawn and dusk. I didn't even know "Crepuscular" was a word. They didn't teach us that in biology.

Long-nosed Potoroo (aka Rat Kangaroo)

 

The Long-nosed Potoroo is about the size of a small rabbit. It has brown-grey fur and a pale grey belly fringed with brown-red. It has small, rounded ears and a sparsely-furred tail 18–24 cm long. It hops like a kangaroo when startled. Did I mention all these animals are just different sized versions of kanagroos?

Quenda (aka Southern Brown Bandicoot)

 

Quendas are usually solitary and can become aggressive towards other Quenda when encounters occur. They build a dome-shaped nest in dense vegetation for protection and give birth between the end of winter and the end of summer. Quenda also have the shortest known gestation period of any marsupial, between 11 and 12 days. Nice and quick. I like it.

Red-tailed Phascogale

 

For a three-week period in July, males embark on an exhausting and fatal frenzy of mating. They travel large distances to mate with as many females as possible. During this flurry of mating activity, the males’ immune system fails before they reach 12 months of age and they succumb to stress-related illnesses and die. Females usually survive the mating season to breed a second or third time. Weak males. Maybe they should try and relax during that mating frenzy.

Spinifex Hopping Mouse

 

They avoid the heat of the desert by sleeping in deep burrows during the day. At dusk, they come out to feed. Spinifex Hopping-mice will usually move around on all fours, however, they will hop around on their strong hindlegs to move fast. Mini kangaroo anyone?

 Water Rat

Apart from the platypus, the Water Rat is the only amphibious land-based Australian mammal. Unlike many Australian rodents, the Water Rat is not entirely nocturnal. It is most active around sunset and has been seen foraging during the day. They are slightly clumsy on land and can climb hollow trees in search of prey. However, they prefer to catch their prey in the water. Me and rats get along so well. At least this one likes sunshine.

 

Western Ringtail Possum

 

Western Ringtail Possums are herbivores and feed on eucalypt, marri and peppermint tree leaves, buds, blossoms and soft fruit.The actual gestation period of Western Ringtail Possums is not known. Births mostly take place in winter.This is the 21st century and we have these animals in zoos, how can the gestation period be unknown? But I HATE possums. They are my least favorite animal. And Australians have been trying to tell me theirs are cuter. Still possum.

Woylie

 

While they forage slowly, Woylies are capable of rapid movement if startled and can spring away at surprising speed. Females can breed anytime and produce up to three young per year. The joey stays in the pouch for about 90–110 days. Even Woylies have joeys (another reason they are kangaroo-like.

Unfortunately, Australia is also home to the most animals that have become extinct during modern times, and most of these little guys are endangered (ferral cats and foxes, destroyed habitat, etc). The foxes and dogs are such a problem that most of the bush has signs that 1080 poison has been put out to control these foreign populations (apparently it is derived from a native Australian plant, so Australian animals are immune to it). The Australian has an Action Plan for Marsupials and Monotremes. Better come visit before more of them are gone!