18/08/2024
All about the Eastern barred bandicoot ~
The Eastern barred bandicoot is one of Australia’s most fascinating native animals. These small nocturnal marsupials were once widespread across southwest Victoria and Tasmania.
Today, the mainland Eastern barred bandicoot is endangered due to predation by foxes and the loss of much of its native habitat.
Fortunately, thanks to efforts to reintroduce the Eastern barred bandicoot into the wild on offshore islands, including Phillip Island and Churchill Islands, this species has been brought back from the brink of extinction.
Why do we need to save the bandicoot?
Eastern barred bandicoots are unique to Victoria and one of our rarest animals. Its near extinction as a result of predation by foxes and the loss of 99% of its native grassland habitat.
Where do Eastern barred bandicoots live and eat?
The Eastern barred bandicoot is a small brown-grey marsupial with distinctive pale bars or stripes across its back, pointed ears and hind legs that look similar to a kangaroo.
Grasslands and grassy woodlands provide the complex habitat preferred by these shy animals. They use their clawed forepaws to scrape out a depression which they line with grass. These nests tucked under tussocks of grass protect the bandicoots during the day while they sleep. While they are solitary creatures, mother bandicoots will share their nests with their young.
When it comes to diet, Eastern barred bandicoots are omnivorous, which means they eat a variety of plant and animal matter. However, they mostly feed on the grubs of beetles, crickets, grasshoppers, moths and earthworms. They use their strong claws and pointed nose to dig for food, leaving small cone-shaped depressions. They have also been found to eat a small amount of onion-grass bulbs and fallen fruit. They forage at night, leaving their nests within two hours after sunset.
Will they eat native orchid bulbs?
Eastern barred bandicoots are primarily insectivorous and only eat small amounts of plants, such as bulbs of onion grass and fallen orchard fruit. Studies of their diet at several release sites have not found any indication that they eat native orchids, despite the native grasslands where they live being rich in orchids, indicating that the two can coexist.
For more information on the Eastern barred bandicoot visit - https://www.penguins.org.au/conservation/education/nature-notes/eastern-barred-bandicoot/
