Mulgaras are the two small

rat Rats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents. Species of rats are found throughout the order Rodentia, but stereotypical rats are found in the genus ''Rattus''. Other rat genera include ''Neotoma'' ( pack rats), ''Bandicota'' (bandicoot ...

-sized species in the genus ''Dasycercus''. They are

marsupial Marsupials are any members of the mammalian infraclass Marsupialia. All extant marsupials are endemic to Australasia, Wallacea and the Americas. A distinctive characteristic common to most of these species is that the young are carried in a po ...

carnivore A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other sof ...

s, closely related to the

Tasmanian devil The Tasmanian devil (''Sarcophilus harrisii'') (palawa kani: purinina) is a carnivorous marsupial of the family Dasyuridae. Until recently, it was only found on the island state of Tasmania, but it has been reintroduced to New South Wales in ...

and the

quoll Quolls (; genus ''Dasyurus'') are carnivorous marsupials native to Australia and New Guinea. They are primarily nocturnal and spend most of the day in a den. Of the six species of quoll, four are found in Australia and two in New Guinea. Anoth ...

s, that live in

desert A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...

s and spinifex grasslands of arid Australia. They are nocturnal, but occasionally "sunbathe" in the entrance of the burrow in which they dwell. Their

kidney The kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped organs found in vertebrates. They are located on the left and right in the retroperitoneal space, and in adult humans are about in length. They receive blood from the paired renal arteries; blood ...

s are highly developed to excrete extremely concentrated urine to preserve water, as the animals rarely drink. They feed mostly on insects, but also eat reptiles and small mammals. They are seasonal breeders breed from June to September. The pouch comprises two lateral folds of skin. Recent research has shown two distinct species, which are very similar. The

brush-tailed mulgara The brush-tailed mulgara (''Dasycercus blythi''), previously the mulgara ''Dasycercus cristicauda'' is a medium sized carnivorous Australian marsupial species weighing approximately . The brush-tailed mulgara is sexually dimorphic with males bein ...

(''D. blythi'', previously classified as ''D.cristicauda''), has an uncrested tail, two upper premolars, and six nipples. The

crest-tailed mulgara The crest-tailed mulgara (''Dasycercus cristicauda''), is a small to medium-sized Australian carnivorous marsupial and a member of the family Dasyuridae (meaning "hairy tail") which includes quolls, dunnarts, the numbat, Tasmanian devil and e ...

(previously ''D. hillieri'', but now reclassified as ''D. cristicauda'') has a crested tail, three upper premolars, and eight nipples. The generic name ''Dasycercus'' means "hairy tail".

Species identification

A long history of confusion exists when classifying mulgaras, and only recently has confidence in the taxonomy of the two species been gained. Identification of the species has been greatly assisted by detailed genetic and morphological studies of museum specimens. The most distinguishing feature in identifying the two species is the crest of hair on the tail. The crest-tailed mulgara has a crest of long black hairs on the upper side of the distal end of the tail, while the brush-tailed mulgara has a brush of black hairs along the final two-thirds of the tail. The two species also have a slightly different dental formation, which is difficult to observe in live animals, and the brush-tailed mulgara has six nipples while the crest-tailed Mulgara has eight. Mulgaras are distributed through the arid regions of Australia where they live in short burrows. The crest-tailed mulgara, previously referred to as the Ampurta, is listed as vulnerable.

Torpor

Both species of mulgaras use

torpor Torpor is a state of decreased physiological activity in an animal, usually marked by a reduced body temperature and metabolic rate. Torpor enables animals to survive periods of reduced food availability. The term "torpor" can refer to the time ...

daily. Studies have shown they use torpor in the wild and in the lab setting. In contrast to most other mammals, mulgaras increase their use of torpor during pregnancy. By conserving energy with torpor, pregnant females can increase their body mass, but it seems they use it to increase fat storage, for lactation later. Pregnant females and breeding males both use torpor during the winter. Free-ranging males, however, only display torpor briefly during the reproductive season, and instead increase their use of torpor after the breeding season is over.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1475367 Dasyuromorphs Mammals of the Northern Territory Taxa named by Wilhelm Peters

Species identification

Torpor

See also

References