The Little long-tailed dunnart (''Sminthopsis dolichura'') is a

dunnart Dunnart is a common name for species of the genus ''Sminthopsis'', narrow-footed marsupials the size of a European mouse. They have a largely insectivorous diet. Taxonomy The genus name ''Sminthopsis'' was published by Oldfield Thomas in 18 ...

that was, along with

Gilbert's dunnart Gilbert's dunnart (''Sminthopsis gilberti'') is a recently discovered dunnart, described in 1984. The length from snout to tail being of which the head and body are and the tail . The hind foot size is , the ear length is and with the weight ...

, described in 1984. The length from snout to tail is of which head and body are and tail long. Hind foot size is , the ear length is and the weight is .

Distribution and habitat

There are two separate areas of habitation for this species, but no subspecies have been identified. The Western Australia distribution is in the northern Goldfield's and Geraldton hinterland, northwest coast, southwest coast and western plateau. The South Australian area includes the coastal areas of the

Great Australian Bight The Great Australian Bight is a large oceanic bight, or open bay, off the central and western portions of the southern coastline of mainland Australia. Extent Two definitions of the extent are in use – one used by the International Hydrog ...

on the

Nullarbor Plain The Nullarbor Plain ( ; Latin: feminine of , 'no', and , 'tree') is part of the area of flat, almost treeless, arid or semi-arid country of southern Australia, located on the Great Australian Bight coast with the Great Victoria Desert to its ...

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Originally called Eyre’s Peninsula, it was named aft ...

west of

Port Augusta Port Augusta is a small city in South Australia. Formerly a port, seaport, it is now a road traffic and Junction (rail), railway junction city mainly located on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf immediately south of the gulf's head and about ...

. Habitat the species prefers include dry sclerophyll, forest, semi-arid woodlands, mallee, (tall, tall open and low open) shrublands and open heath vegetation.

Social organisation and breeding

The species is

nocturnal Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatures generally have highly developed sens ...

with males having a large home range, an adaptation to exploiting various habitats from one season to another. Females breed as early as 5–8 months and then only between March and August. Males can breed at 4–5 months. The

joeys The Australia national under-17 soccer team represents Australia in men's international under-17 soccer. The team is controlled by the governing body for Football in Australia, Football Federation Australia (FFA), which is currently a membe ...

are weaned during September–December or when 5 grams. The lifespan of females is approximately two years and males just over one year.

Diet

Primarily an insect eater, the little long-tailed dunnart will also consume small reptiles, amphibians and mammals.

References

External links

Little Long-tailed DunnartImage of the type specimen's skull
{{Taxonbar, from=Q134082 Dasyuromorphs Mammals of Western Australia Mammals of South Australia Marsupials of Australia Mammals described in 1984 Taxa named by Darrell Kitchener