The red-cheeked dunnart (''Sminthopsis virginiae'') is so called because of the distinctive red hair on its cheek. It is an

Australasia Australasia is a region that comprises Australia, New Zealand and some neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term is used in a number of different contexts, including geopolitically, physiogeographically, philologically, and ecologica ...

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 ...

. Its total length is ; its average body length is with a tail of . Ear length is . Its weight varies between . Its tail is thin and pale pink.

Distribution and habitat

The red-cheeked dunnart is distributed in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

. The nominate subspecies ''S. v. virginiae'' occurs in the Queensland around the North Gulf, NE coasts,

Mackay Mackay may refer to: *Clan Mackay, the Scottish clan from which the surname "MacKay" derives Mackay may also refer to: Places Australia * Mackay Region, a local government area ** Mackay, Queensland, a city in the above region *** Mackay Airpor ...

to Cape York. Subspecies ''S. v. nitela'' inhabits the Kimberley's to the top of

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...

. Habitat includes

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

s, open rocky

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

swamp A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

soak Soak may refer to: * Steeping * Bathing * Soakage (source of water), a source of water in Australian deserts * Soak dike Soak may refer to: * Steeping * Bathing * Soakage (source of water), a source of water in Australian deserts * Soak dike, d ...

s and margins of

tropical forest Tropical forests (a.k.a. jungle) are forested landscapes in tropical regions: ''i.e.'' land areas approximately bounded by the tropic of Cancer and Capricorn, but possibly affected by other factors such as prevailing winds. Some tropical fores ...

Social organisation and breeding

The behaviour of the red-cheecked dunnart, like most ''

Sminthopsis 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 ...

'' species, is not well known. They breed from October to March. Young are gestated for 15 days and weaned at 65–70 days with maturity by 4–6 months.

Diet

Its typical diet includes insects and small vertebrates. They quickly learn to avoid the poisonous

cane toad The cane toad (''Rhinella marina''), also known as the giant neotropical toad or marine toad, is a large, terrestrial true toad native to South and mainland Central America, but which has been introduced to various islands throughout Oceania ...

Subspecies

There are three recognised subspecies of the red-cheeked dunnart: *''S. v. virginiae'', found in

*''S. v. nitela'', found in

*''S. v. rufigenis'', found in

References

External links

Australian Biological Resources Study
{{Taxonbar, from=Q162679 Dasyuromorphs Mammals of Western New Guinea Mammals of Papua New Guinea Mammals of Queensland Mammals of Western Australia Mammals of the Northern Territory Marsupials of Australia Mammals described in 1847 Marsupials of New Guinea