The white-footed dunnart (''Sminthopsis leucopus'') is a

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 ...

that occurs on

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

and mainland

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 ...

. It occurs along the coast and in inner

Gippsland Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It covers ...

and

Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...

areas up to 400 metres near Narbethong. In southern New South Wales, the white-footed dunnart is known to occur at elevations at least as high as 1000 metresKavanagh RP, & Webb GA. (1998). Effects of variable-intensity logging on mammals, reptiles and amphibians at Waratah Creek, southeastern New South Wales. ''Pacific Conservation Biology'', 4(4), 326. https://www.publish.csiro.au/pc/pc980326 . The length from snout to tail tip is of which head and body are and the tail long. They weigh .

Habitat

The average rainfall of its habitat is between per year. Unlike the

fat-tailed dunnart The fat-tailed dunnart (''Sminthopsis crassicaudata'') is a species of mouse-like marsupial of the Dasyuridae, the family that includes the little red kaluta, quolls, and the Tasmanian devil. It has an average body length of with a tail of . Ear ...

, this species requires forest and woodland cover of more than 50% of any square metre of heath understory or mid-story plant species. Other habitats include coastal

tussock grass Tussock grasses or bunch grasses are a group of grass species in the family Poaceae. They usually grow as singular plants in clumps, tufts, hummocks, or bunches, rather than forming a sod or lawn, in meadows, grasslands, and prairies. As perennial ...

lands, sedgeland and wet heath. This

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 ...

has an individual range of about 120 square metres for both sexes, although this varies greatly among males, with some males acquiring territories of up to 1200 square metres. Male territories often overlap those of females.

Breeding and social organisation

The white-footed dunnarts mate in summer. The female white-footed dunnart will give birth in September or October, and up to ten joeys may be delivered. The white-footed dunnart will shortly die after the litter is born. After eight weeks old, the young will exit their mothers pouch, continue nursing for a month, then disperse.

Diet

The feeding habit of this 20–30 g species is similar to that of other

dasyurid The Dasyuridae are a family of marsupials native to Australia and New Guinea, including 71 extant species divided into 17 genera. Many are small and mouse-like or shrew-like, giving some of them the name marsupial mice or marsupial shrews, but th ...

s; it is an opportunistic feeder. Diet consists of invertebrates and reptiles of between 1 and 18 mm in length.

References

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External links

Mammals of Tasmania – white-footed dunnartWhite-footed dunnart
{{Taxonbar, from=Q135415 Dasyuromorphs Mammals of Tasmania Mammals of New South Wales Mammals of Queensland Mammals of Victoria (Australia) Marsupials of Australia Mammals described in 1842 Taxa named by John Edward Gray