Dasyurus viverrinus
Eastern Quoll at Throsby, ACT
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| Dasyurus viverrinus | DonFletcher | 22 May 2023 | ||
| Dasyurus viverrinus | rbannister | 22 May 2023 |
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User's notes
Found poking out from under the boardwalk. I didn't get a photo of the tail or back feet unfortunately, and I couldn't see an obvious cause of death. I reported it to the rangers.
2 comments
22 May 2023
Thank you rbannister. I hope a scavenger did/does not get to it before the rangers. Notwithstanding that the other local quoll species is the spot TAILED quoll (also present in the Mulligans-Goorooyarroo Woodland Sanctuary) we can identify this as an Eastern Quoll without having to see the tail, or whole animal.
23 May 2023
Thanks @rbannister for the observation. At this time of year, male eastern quolls are shifting their territories ahead of the breeding season in late May and early winter to maximise the number of females they have access to (since they are polygamous). Dominant males will have secured high-value territories in MFWS, so it is likely that subordinate males that were outcompeted have been forced to find territory over the fence in Goorooyarroo Nature Reserve and the Offset Area near Throsby.
Eastern quolls are in the same family as antechinus, in which males only live for one year due to their 'suicidal reproduction' strategy. Being closely related, it follows that male eastern quolls have short lifespans - typically 1–3 year in the wild. This, in combination with territorial disputes, often leads to an increase in male (and sometimes female) mortality at this time of year. However, since each female can raise up to 6 pups by the following summer, their breeding more than makes up for this.
Please keep posting through these interesting records, and don't hesitate to contact me or the Mulligans Flat team if you have any questions.
ps @DonFletcher the two spotted-tailed quolls translocated to MFWS are no longer present (both were mortalities).
Eastern quolls are in the same family as antechinus, in which males only live for one year due to their 'suicidal reproduction' strategy. Being closely related, it follows that male eastern quolls have short lifespans - typically 1–3 year in the wild. This, in combination with territorial disputes, often leads to an increase in male (and sometimes female) mortality at this time of year. However, since each female can raise up to 6 pups by the following summer, their breeding more than makes up for this.
Please keep posting through these interesting records, and don't hesitate to contact me or the Mulligans Flat team if you have any questions.
ps @DonFletcher the two spotted-tailed quolls translocated to MFWS are no longer present (both were mortalities).
Location information
- Coordinates 149.165758-35.183954
- Places Throsby, ACT
Sighting information
- 1 Abundance
- 14 Apr 2023 10:00 AM Recorded on
- rbannister Recorded by
- Unknown Gender
- Deceased Animal health
Collections
- rbannister Canberra & Southern Tablelands NatureMapr ACT threatened species Dasyurus viverrinus Quolls & Tasmanian Devils Mammals
Species information
- Dasyurus viverrinus Scientific name
- Eastern Quoll Common name
- Not Sensitive
- Endangered *
- Non-invasive or negligible
- Up to 684m Recorded at altitude
- External link More information
Record quality
Quality score
5 / 7
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- More than one media file
- Verified by an expert moderator
- Description
- Additional attributes
- Nearby sighting(s) of same species
- GPS evidence of location