Fat Tailed Dunnart

Vulnerable

The EPBC lists this animal Isoodon obesulus to be endangered

Update; Now in March 2005 according to "Conservation News" by the Conservation and Land Management WA. The Southern Brown Bandicoot has been removed from the threatened species list.

Photographed at Boyagin Rock in the wheat belt. This could be the I. obesulus or the fusciventer subspecies

There are five subspecies of this short nosed bandicoot.

Upper jaw of South-eastern Bandicoot Isoodon obesulus which was 6.4cmL x 3cmW

The upper jaw has in total 10 incisors, 2 canine teeth, 6 premolars and 8 molars. The flatter molars are used for grinding plant material.

The Southern Brown bandicoot has a broader skull than the Long-nosed bandicoot which is slightly longer and narrower.

Lower jaw of South-eastern Bandicoot Isoodon obesulus

The lower jaw in total has 6 incisors, 2 canines, and 6 premolars and 8 molars half the teeth on each side of the jaw.

Being omnivorous bandicoots need grinding, ripping teeth.

Bandicoot tracks

Here you can see the hind feet tracks in the sand. Photographed at the Armadale Reptile Centre Perth

What do they eat?

Bandicoots leave a trail of diggings where they have been as they like to dig for tubers, insects and their larvae or fungi. Be careful not to get tricked by the bunny diggings though.

Bandicoot diggings are different from echidna's as the echidna leaves a round hole in the base of the digging area where its snout has gone in.

Go here to see our video of the bandicoot digging at Boyagin Rock Nature Reserve in the wheatbelt.

They are not a rat or part of the rodent family. They are a marsupial.

The Southern Brown bandicoot is approx 280-355mm in body length. The tail is approx 80-130mm long.

It is found in the south-west of Western Australia as far north to Moore River. It lives in heath, forests and coastal shrub areas.

In Perth I have noticed the most southern brown bandicoots in the Jandakot, Bibra Lake and Kalamunda areas.

They shelter in a nest of plants beneath a thick ground cover. They like to live around wet areas.

They tend to live alone but in the same vicinity of other bandicoots where their territories will overlap.

They have a short life span of around 3 years.

Photographed at the Western Australian Museum Perth

This is the bandicoots rear facing pouch. As this animal digs to find its food the soil would be kicked all over the pouch if it was facing forwards.

There are 8 teats. But they do not have 8 offspring.

Baby bandicoots are born unfurred and only 12 1/2 days after conception. Bandicoots mature and can reproduce very quickly.

Southern Brown Bandicoot Scats

Bandicoots don't tend to do a lot of scats around the area that they are feeding in like rabbits do, this helps a lot in determining if the diggings in the sand have been done by bandicoots or rabbits. Rabbit scats are also much rounder.

Go to our page on European Rabbits.