Desert Bandicoot (Perameles eremiana)

The Desert Bandicoot, described in 1897, was restricted to the arid center of Australia; the natives there knew it by many names including karitjarri, karl-karl, kililpi, nganngarrpa, nyirnmi, walilya or warralyarri.

The nocturnal and flesh-eating species inhabited dry, sandy areas covered with spinifex (Spinifex spp.) and other tussock grasses; it fed upon beetle larvae, termites and ants, especially honey-pot ants.

The Desert Bandicoot disappeared most likely due to predation by feral cats and Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes (L.)) introduced from Europe; the last sighting took place in 1943 in Western Australia, according to some natives it may have survived into the 1960s. [1]

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References:

[1] Andrew A. Burbridge; Ken A. Johnson; Phillip J. Fuller; R. I. Southgate: Aboriginal knowledge of the mammals of the central deserts of Australia. Australian Wildlife Research 15: 9-39. 1988

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edited: 24.02.2024