The eastern barred bandicoot (Perameles gunnii) is a nocturnal, rabbit-sized marsupial that is found only in southeastern Australia, specifically on the island of Tasmania and on the mainland in Victoria. There are four surviving bandicoot species in the genus Perameles, and the eastern barred bandicoot is one of them. It can be told apart from a related species, the long-nosed bandicoot, by having three or four dark horizontal bars on its rump. In Tasmania, this species is common and has many individuals. However, the population on the mainland in Victoria is in trouble and requires ongoing conservation efforts to survive.

Description

The eastern barred bandicoot weighs less than 2 kg (4.4 lb) and has a short tail with three to four whitish bars across its rump. This species has two separate populations: one on the mainland of Australia and another on the island of Tasmania. The Tasmanian population is slightly larger than the mainland population, with an average adult mass of 750 g (26 oz) in Victoria and 1,000 g (35 oz) in Tasmania. These animals live for two to three years and do not live in groups. Males claim larger home ranges than females and only mate with females during breeding season.

This species is active at night. It leaves its nest at dusk to search for food, such as crickets, beetles, and earthworms. During the day, it rests in a nest lined with grass. When foraging, it uses its long nose to dig into the soil and eagerly digs when it finds food. Female bandicoots have eight nipples and can give birth to a maximum of five young in one litter, with an average of two to three young. The gestation period lasts 12 days, which is one of the shortest among mammals. Young are weaned at 55 days, and juvenile bandicoots stay with their mothers and forage with them until day 86. Under ideal conditions, females can have up to five litters per year. However, reproduction decreases during summer and stops completely during droughts.

Distribution and conservation status

The eastern barred bandicoot once lived across the basalt plains of southwest Victoria and in Tasmania. However, the Victorian subspecies is now very close to extinction because of hunting by foxes and cats that were introduced to the area, as well as land cleared for farming. Since 1989, eight reintroduction sites have been created in the bandicoot’s former habitat. Protecting the eastern barred bandicoot in Victoria now depends on captive breeding and reintroduction programs. Key steps in this plan include keeping a safe population in captivity, researching ways to improve breeding and reintroduction success, and raising public awareness about this rare animal.

A management plan created in 1987 and updated in 1989 suggested the first reintroduction of the eastern barred bandicoot in Victoria at Woodlands Historic Park, 20 km (12 mi) northwest of Melbourne. Animals were moved from the last remaining wild population in Hamilton, western Victoria, to captive breeding facilities at Woodlands to start a new population in 1988. The offspring born in captivity were later released into the Nature Reserve, called the Back Paddock, a 400-ha section of the park with a fence that keeps out feral predators.

Populations at four sites are now extinct (Floating Islands Nature Reserve, Lanark, Cobra Killuc Wildlife Reserve, and Lake Goldsmith Nature Reserve). The population at Woodlands Historic Park is functionally extinct, the population at Mooramong is declining, and the populations at Hamilton Community Parklands and Mount Rothwell are increasing. The last wild population, which lived near the Grange Burn (a creek) in Hamilton, has also been declared extinct. In 2008, the estimated number of eastern barred bandicoots in Victoria was 150.

Eastern barred bandicoots have been successfully released on Phillip Island, French Island, and Churchill Island in Victoria’s Westernport.

On September 15, 2021, Victoria’s Environment Minister Lily D’Ambrosio announced that the conservation status of the Victorian subspecies changed from “extinct in the wild” to “endangered” because its population grew from 150 to 1,500 over thirteen years. This was the first time in Australia’s history that such a change in conservation status occurred.

The Tasmanian subspecies (P. g. gunni) is at risk of extinction. This species is more widespread than its mainland cousin because Tasmania has large areas of suitable habitat and no red foxes, which are the bandicoot’s main predator.

Recovery efforts

In the state of Victoria, a recovery team manages efforts to protect the Victorian subspecies. Government officials, non-profit groups, and private conservation organizations work together to create and carry out plans that help the species survive. These groups include Conservation Volunteers, Zoos Victoria, Parks Victoria, Mount Rothwell Biodiversity Interpretation Centre, University of Melbourne, Conservation Enterprises Unlimited, and the National Trust of Australia (Victoria).

A successful recovery method is using conservation fences to keep harmful, non-native animals away from endangered eastern barred bandicoots. These fences prevent dangerous predators like feral cats and red foxes from entering areas where the bandicoots live. Conservation fences also help stop the spread of diseases among the small number of remaining bandicoots.

Phylogeny

The eastern barred bandicoot is closely related to other bandicoots in its genus. Only two species in this group still exist today: the western barred bandicoot (Perameles bougainville) and the long-nosed bandicoot (Perameles nasuta). It is also closely related to the desert bandicoot of the same genus, but this species no longer exists. There are about 20 other bandicoots in the same family, Peramelidae. These animals share similar traits, such as long, pointed snouts and small ears. Bandicoots are closely related to bilbies, which belong to the same order, Peramelemorphia. All of these animals are part of the infraclass Marsupialia, a group that also includes koalas and kangaroos. This means they split off from placental mammals, a different group of mammals, about 100 million years ago.

In popular culture

The species serves as the model for the popular video game character Crash Bandicoot. It was chosen by game creators Andy Gavin and Jason Rubin from several Tasmanian mammals because of its attractiveness and limited recognition.