Mountain brushtail possum

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Mountain brushtail possum [1]
Trichosurus cunninghami3.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Infraclass: Marsupialia
Order: Diprotodontia
Family: Phalangeridae
Genus: Trichosurus
Species:
T. cunninghami
Binomial name
Trichosurus cunninghami
Lindenmayer, Dubach and Viggers, 2002
Mountain Brushtail Possum area.png
Mountain brushtail possum range

The mountain brushtail possum, or southern bobuck (Trichosurus cunninghami), is a nocturnal, semi-arboreal marsupial of the family Phalangeridae native to southeastern Australia. It was not described as a separate species until 2002. [3]

Contents

Taxonomy

In 2002, based upon morphometric differences, the mountain brushtail possum, Trichosurus caninus, was proposed to be reclassified into two distinct species. [4] The northern form was to retain the binomial name T. caninus, but was henceforth to be known as the short-eared possum. The southern population, prevalent in the Victorian Alps, was to retain its already designated common name mountain brushtail possum, but assigned a new binomial, T. cunninghami. However, genetic divergence between T. caninus and the putative T. cunninghami may not support a case for the establishment of a new species.

In 2005, a colony of bobucks was discovered in swamp coastal habitat in south-west Gippsland, Victoria. [5] A follow-up biodiversity survey uncovered a widespread yet previously unrecorded population of bobucks in coastal habitat and parts of inland Gippsland.

In view of these findings, the currently accepted name, "mountain" brushtail possum, is no longer accurately descriptive. One suggestion is to rename the northern group as the "northern bobuck" and the Victorian animals as "southern bobuck", T. cunninghami. [6]

Description

Both the mountain brushtail possum, T. cunninghami, and its cousin the short-eared possum, T. caninus, are generally reported to inhabit wet sclerophyll forest in south-eastern Australia along and to the south and east of the Great Dividing Range of eastern Australia from southern Victoria to south-eastern Queensland. [7] [8] They typically dwell at altitudes greater than 300 metres (980 ft). [9] Bobucks are medium-sized (2.5–4.5 kg or 5.5–9.9 lb),semi-arboreal, nocturnal marsupials. [8]

Diet and habitat

Habitat and dietary requirements of both the mountain brushtail possum and the short-eared possum are reported to be more specialised than those of their close relative the common brushtail possum, T. vulpecula. [10] As a result, the common brushtail possum has been able to colonise a greater variety of habitats than either of its bobuck relatives. For example, unlike common brushtails, bobucks are not known in urban areas and have been thought of as being obligately adapted to stable forest environments. [11]

During the day, the mountain brushtail possum dens in tree hollows (or sometimes in dense ground cover) and at night emerges to forage. In mountain country the mountain brushtail possum is reported to depend mainly upon Acacia species for its diet [12] [13] and in particular the Silver Wattle, Acacia dealbata. [14] However, in lowland Gippsland there is no association of these animals with any particular type of vegetation: it is to be found in a variety of Eucalypt species stands or the Tea Tree. The mountain brushtail possum is known to feed at ground level [13] [15] [16] and they are able to utilise hypogeal and epigeal fungi as well as ground-level plants food resources. [13] [16] [17]

The mountain brushtail possum is also reported to require tree hollows for use as dens. [18] Indeed, both the easy availability of hollow-bearing trees and Silver Wattle are thought to determine the population density and distribution of the mountain brushtail possum in Victoria. [19]

Reproduction

The mountain brushtail possum shows little sexual dimorphism. [14] Mating occurs within a 2–3 week period during autumn (March–June).[ citation needed ] Female oestrus is highly synchronised, and most females will give birth to one offspring each year. Males do not appear to provide any care to the young. The young emerge from the pouch after several months and are then carried on the back of their mother. Over the summer (December to February), young begin to accompany their mothers on foot as a first step, as it were, to full independence. Neither males nor females will reproduce until they are at least two years of age. There is evidence that female offspring are often philopatric while young males have been found to disperse up to 8 km (5 mi). Upon reaching reproductive maturity, the mountain brushtail possum will retain the same home range for life.

Its longevity is amazingly high[ further explanation needed ]: in fact it is perhaps the longest lived marsupial species. [20]

Recent research [14] [21] indicates that the mating system of the mountain brushtail possum is variable. Intensive study of two mountain brushtail possum populations found that one of these populations was polygynous, while the other was monogamous. The two populations lived within 2 km of each other, yet the group dwelt in a linear habitat strip along a roadside that had escaped logging for over 100 years, whereas the monogamous population inhabited a forest patch that had been logged 40 years ago. To date it remains unclear whether this difference in mating system is because of the geographical shape of the habitat or the quality of its resources.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phalangeriformes</span> Suborder of arboreal marsupials

Phalangeriformes is a paraphyletic suborder of about 70 species of small to medium-sized arboreal marsupials native to Australia, New Guinea, and Sulawesi. The species are commonly known as possums, gliders, and cuscus. The common name "possum" for various Phalangeriformes species derives from the creatures' resemblance to the opossums of the Americas. However, although opossums are also marsupials, Australasian possums are more closely related to other Australasian marsupials such as kangaroos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yarra Ranges National Park</span> Protected area in Victoria, Australia

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Common brushtail possum</span> Species of marsupial

The common brushtail possum is a nocturnal, semiarboreal marsupial of the family Phalangeridae, native to Australia and invasive in New Zealand, and the second-largest of the possums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Common ringtail possum</span> Species of marsupial

The common ringtail possum is an Australian marsupial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Powerful owl</span> Species of owl

The powerful owl, a species of owl native to south-eastern and eastern Australia, is the largest owl on the continent. It is found in coastal areas and in the Great Dividing Range, rarely more than 200 km (120 mi) inland. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species also refers to this species as the powerful boobook.

Possum may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-bellied glider</span> Species of marsupial

The yellow-bellied glider, also known as the fluffy glider, is an arboreal and nocturnal gliding possum that lives in native eucalypt forests in eastern Australia, from northern Queensland south to Victoria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scaly-tailed possum</span> Species of marsupial

The scaly-tailed possum is found in northwestern Australia, where it is restricted to the Kimberley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greater glider</span> Genus of marsupials

The greater gliders are three species of large gliding marsupials in the genus Petauroides, all of which are found in eastern Australia. Until 2020 they were considered to be one species, Petauroides volans. In 2020 morphological and genetic differences, obtained using diversity arrays technology, showed there were three species subsumed under this one name. The two new species were named Petauroides armillatus and Petauroides minor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Short-eared possum</span> Species of marsupial

The short-eared possum is a species of marsupial in the family Phalangeridae, endemic to Australia. Found north of Sydney, New South Wales, on Australia’s eastern coast, the species was once classed under the mountain brushtail possum, its closest relative.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brushtail possum</span> Genus of marsupials

The brushtail possums are the members of the genus Trichosurus in the Phalangeridae, a family of marsupials. They are native to Australia and some small nearby islands. Unique among marsupials, they have shifted the hypaxial muscles from the epipubic to the pelvis, much like in placental muscles, meaning that their breathing cycle is more similar to the latter than to that of other non-eutherian mammals. In general, they are more terrestrially oriented than other possums, and in some ways might parallel primates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phalangeridae</span> Family of marsupials native to Australia, New Guinea, and Eastern Indonesia

The Phalangeridae are a family of mostly nocturnal marsupials native to Australia, New Guinea, and Eastern Indonesia, including the cuscuses, brushtail possums, and their close relatives. Considered a type of possum, most species are arboreal, and they inhabit a wide range of forest habitats from alpine woodland to eucalypt forest and tropical jungle. Many species have been introduced to various non-native habitats by humans for thousands of years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown Mountain forest</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coppery brushtail possum</span> Species of marsupial

The coppery brushtail possum is a species of marsupial possum in the family Phalangeridae. Coppery brushtails are found within the Atherton Tablelands area of Queensland, in northeastern Australia. These mammals inhabit rainforest ecosystems, living within the tree canopy. Though they have a restricted distribution, they are locally common. This population is often considered a subspecies of T. vulpecula.

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. 49. ISBN   0-801-88221-4. OCLC   62265494.
  2. ↑ Menkhorst, P.; Taggart, D.; Ellis, M.; Martin, R. (2016). "Trichosurus cunninghami". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2016: e.T136256A21952015. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-2.RLTS.T136256A21952015.en . Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  3. ↑ Kerl A (2001), Possums: the Brushtails, Ringtails and Greater Glider. UNSW Press, Sydney NSW.
  4. ↑ Lindenmayer, D. B.; R. B. Cunningham; et al. (1990). "Habitat requirements of the mountain brushtail possum and the greater glider in the montane ash-type eucalypt forests of the Central Highlands of Victoria". Australian Wildlife Research. 17 (5): 467–478. doi:10.1071/WR9900467.
  5. ↑ Hynes D. & Cleeland M. (2005). "Presence of Bobucks (T. caninus) in The Gurdies on Westernport Bay, Victoria". The Victorian Naturalist. 122 (3): 141–145.
  6. ↑ Hynes D. & Cleeland M. (2010). "Extended range of bobucks Trichosurus cunninghami in south-west Gippsland, Victoria". The Victorian Naturalist. 127 (1): 15–19.
  7. ↑ Lindenmayer, D. B.; J. Dubach; et al. (2002). "Geographic dimorphism in the mountain brushtail possum T. caninus: the case for a new species". Australian Journal of Zoology. 50 (4): 369–393. doi:10.1071/ZO01047.
  8. 1 2 Menkhorst P, Knight F (2001). A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia. Oxford University Press. ISBN   0-19-550870-X.
  9. ↑ Martin, J. K. (2005). "Behavioural Ecology of the Bobuck (Trichosurus cunninghami)". University of Melbourne, Melbourne.
  10. ↑ Kerl A (2001). Possums: the Brushtails, Ringtails and Greater Glider. Sydney NSW: UNSW Press.
  11. ↑ Tyndale-Biscoe, H. (2005). Life of marsupials . Collingwood: CSIRO Publishing. ISBN   0-7131-2376-1.
  12. ↑ Burchfield, E.; N. S. Agar; et al. (2005). "Effects of terpenes and tannins on some physiological and biochemical parameters in two species of phalangerid possums (Marsupialia: Phalangeridae)". Australian Journal of Zoology. 53 (6): 395–402. doi:10.1071/ZO05045.
  13. 1 2 3 Seebeck, J. H.; Warneke, R. M. & Baxter, B. J. (1984). "Diet of the bobuck, T. caninus (Ogilby) (Marsupialia: Phalangeridae) in a mountain forest in Victoria". In A. P. Smith & I. D. Hume (eds.). Possums and Gliders. Sydney: Surrey Beatty and Sons. pp. 145–154.
  14. 1 2 3 Martin, J.K. & Handasyde, K.A. (2007). "Comparison of Bobuck demography in two habitat types in the Strathbogie Ranges, Australia". Journal of Zoology. 271 (4): 375–385. doi:10.1111/j.1469-7998.2006.00207.x.
  15. ↑ Kavanagh, R. P. (1984). "Seasonal changes in habitat use by gliders and possums in southeastern New South Wales". In A. P. Smith; I. D. Hume (eds.). Possums and Gliders. Sydney: Chipping North, Surrey Beatty & Sons. pp. 527–543.
  16. 1 2 Martin, J. K.; Handasyde K.A.; et al. (2004). R. L. Goldingay; S. M. Jackson (eds.). "The biology of Australian possums and gliders: Aspects of the ecology of the bobuck T. caninus in the Strathbogie Ranges, Victoria". Sydney: Chipping Norton, Surrey Beatty & Sons: 484–489.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  17. ↑ Claridge, A. W. & D. B. Lindenmayer (1998). "Consumption of hypogeous fungi by the mountain brushtail possum (T. caninus) in eastern Australia". Mycological Research. 102 (3): 269–272. doi:10.1017/S0953756297004978.
  18. ↑ Martin, J. K. (2005). Behavioural Ecology of the Bobuck (Trichosurus cunninghami). University of Melbourne, Melbourne.
  19. ↑ Lindenmayer, D. B.; R. B. Cunningham; et al. (1990). "Habitat requirements of the mountain brushtail possum and the greater glider in the montane ash-type eucalypt forests of the Central Highlands of Victoria". Australian Wildlife Research. 17 (5): 467–478. doi:10.1071/WR9900467.
  20. ↑ Viggers K. & Lindenmayer D. (2002). "The Other Brushtail Possum". Nature Australia. 27 (6): 46.
  21. ↑ Martin, J. K. (2006). Den-use and home-range characteristics of Bobucks, T. cunninghami, resident in a forest patch. Australian Journal of Zoology 54(4): 225–234.
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