Bronze quoll

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Bronze quoll [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Infraclass: Marsupialia
Order: Dasyuromorphia
Family: Dasyuridae
Genus: Dasyurus
Species:
D. spartacus
Binomial name
Dasyurus spartacus
Van Dyck, 1987
Bronze Quoll.jpg
Bronze quoll range

[3] The bronze quoll (Dasyurus spartacus) is a species of quoll found only in the Trans-Fly savanna and grasslands of Papua New Guinea and South Papua in Indonesia. [2]

Contents

History

It was discovered in the early 1970s when five specimens were collected, but only described in 1987 when Dr. Stephen Van Dyck of the Queensland Museum examined them and recognised their distinctness. [4] As of February 2013 there are twelve public museum specimens, 8 from traps and 4 from local hunters. [2] It is the largest surviving marsupial carnivore of New Guinea, after the thylacine's extirpation from New Guinea thousands of years ago.

Taxonomy

Very little is known of it; it was previously thought to be an outlying population of the western quoll (Dasyurus geoffroii). [5]

Status

As of February 2013, there was an estimated population of less than 10,000 and was listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. A nocturnal predator, it inhabits savanna woodlands. It is threatened by introduced predators like domesticated and feral dogs, and feral cats. It has been observed in Wasur National Park and Tonda Wildlife Management Area. [2]

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dasyuridae</span> Family of marsupials

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quoll</span> Genus of marsupial mammals

Quolls are carnivorous marsupials native to Australia and New Guinea. They are primarily nocturnal and spend most of the day in a den. Of the six species of quoll, four are found in Australia and two in New Guinea. Another two species are known from fossil remains in Pliocene and Pleistocene deposits in Queensland. Genetic evidence indicates that quolls evolved around 15 million years ago in the Miocene, and that the ancestors of the six species had all diverged by around four million years ago. The six species vary in weight and size, from 300 g (11 oz) to 7 kg (15 lb). They have brown or black fur and pink noses. They are largely solitary, but come together for a few social interactions such as mating which occurs during the winter season. A female gives birth to up to 30 pups, but the number that can be raised to adulthood is limited by the number of teats (6–7). They have a life span of 1–5 years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern quoll</span> Species of marsupial native to Australia

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The New Guinean quoll, also known as the New Guinea quoll or New Guinea native cat, is a carnivorous marsupial mammal native to New Guinea. It is the second-largest surviving marsupial carnivore of New Guinea. It is known as suatg in the Kalam language of Papua New Guinea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Guinean planigale</span> Species of marsupial

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western barred bandicoot</span> Species of marsupial

The Western barred bandicoot, also known as the Shark Bay bandicoot or the Marl, is a small species of bandicoot; now extinct across most of its former range, the western barred bandicoot only survives on offshore islands and in fenced sanctuaries on the mainland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spectacled hare-wallaby</span> Species of marsupial

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calaby's pademelon</span> Species of marsupial

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trans-Fly savanna and grasslands</span> Ecoregion in New Guinea

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References

  1. Groves, C. P. (2005). Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 25. ISBN   0-801-88221-4. OCLC   62265494.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Leary, T.; Seri, L.; Flannery, T.; Wright, D.; Hamilton, S.; Helgen, K.; Singadan, R.; Menzies, J.; Allison, A.; James, R.; Woolley, P. (2016). "Dasyurus spartacus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T6301A21947093. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T6301A21947093.en . Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  3. "Closeup Shot Small Bronze Quoll Walking Stock Photo 2342592401". Shutterstock. Retrieved 2024-09-06.
  4. Shuker, Karl (1993). The Lost Ark: New and Rediscovered Animals of the 20th Century. HarperCollins Publishers. p. 91. ISBN   0-00-219943-2.
  5. Firestone, Karen. "Population genetics of New Guinean quolls". University of New South Wales. Archived from the original on 2006-09-18. Retrieved 2007-02-02.