Rediscovered Species

[Sanju]

“Extinct” Marsupial Found Alive in Australia After More Than a Century

*This image is copyright of its original author

Image: Reece Pedler/UNSW
A crest-tailed mulgara — thought to be extinct for more than 100 years — was recently found burrowing through the sand dunes of New South Wales.
Known previously only through fossilized remnants, the animal is one of two species of mulgara found throughout Central Australia. These marsupials have crested bushy tails, measure up to a foot in length, and boast sandy-blonde fur.

A CREST-TAILED mulgara (Dasycercus cristicauda), not seen in New South Wales for almost a century and presumed extinct to the area, has been found in the Sturt National Park north-west of Tibooburra.
A team of scientists from UNSW came across the single mulgara while working on the Wild Deserts Project, an initiative that started at the beginning of this year and aims to bring back seven locally extinct mammals to the NSW corner country.
There are two species of mulgara in Australia, the crest-tailed and the brush-tailed mulgara. The crest-tailed can be distinguished by the arrangement of black hairs along the back half of the tail which form more of a dorsal crest along its tail.

*This image is copyright of its original author

(Image Credit: Wild Deserts)

“The species weighs around 150 grams and has pale blonde fur and a thick tail with a distinctive black crest,” Wild Deserts ecologist Dr Rebecca West confirmed.
The crest-tailed mulgara is to believe to have become extinct to the NSW area due to predation by introduced species.
“The Crest-tailed Mulgara was once widely distributed across sandy desert environments in inland Australia, but declined due to the effects of rabbits, cats and foxes,” Rebecca said.

According to Wild Deserts project co-ordinator Reece Pedler, next year the Wild Deserts team are due to begin introduced predator and rabbit eradication programs, which he said will further assist the crest-tailed mulgara’s comeback.

Crest-tailed mulgaras feed primarily on small mammals, reptiles, and insects. They persist in harsh desert environments and require little water for survival. In fact, they get most of their water from animal juices and the innards of invertebrates.

The mulgaras were originally driven to extinction due to the introduction of invasive species including cats, foxes, and rabbits, all of which have European origins. Their return to existence in this specific area could be indicative of a natural decline in rabbit and invasive predator populations.

The recently spotted mulgara was found by researchers from the Wild Deserts project on a scientific monitoring trip in Sturt National Park, located just north-west of Tibooburra. Researchers identified the animal as a young female before releasing it back into the wild, hopeful for its reproduction.

Wild Deserts aims to reintroduce locally extinct mammal species back into their native habitats, which also involves removing some invasive species like rabbits, feral cats, and foxes. The greater bilby, burrowing betong, Western quoll, and Western barred bandicoot are the project’s primary focus, but they will now keep their eyes peeled for mulgara tracks as well.
“Next year we are due to begin introduced predator and rabbit eradication from a large area, which will no doubt help the Mulgara,” Pedler stated in a press release.

https://roaring.earth/extinct-marsupial-...=mashshare
https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/...g-absence/

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