Thursday 27 September 2012 Quokka - Marsupial Waste Recycler

While European explorers have variously mistaken them for rats and wild cats, quokkas (Setonix brachyurus) are actually small marsupials, morphologically similar to wallabies and, to a lesser extent, kangaroos but typically smaller. Quokkas can weigh up to 5 kilograms (about 11 lbs); growing to just 54cm (21.3 inches) tall and 30cm (11.8 inches) long.

Quokkas are adapted to the warm climate of Western Australia and the largest population of them is found on Rottnest Island near Perth. Indeed, the island, somewhat indirectly, is named for the presence of quokkas. In 1696, an early explorer of Western Australia (then New Holland), the Dutch sea captain - Willem de Vlamingh, considered the quokkas to be vermin and named the island 'Rottnest', which is Dutch for 'rat nest'. This less than flattering name has, it seems, stood the test of time.

Rottnest Island is something of a safe-haven for quokka, as it is free of fox and cats that were, in fact, only relatively recently introduced to the island by European settlers. Moreover, laws on the island mean that it is illegal for visitors to interfere with the animals in any way. However, the quokkas' complete lack of fear of humans, which means that they remain highly vulnerable to abuse.

There is a small mainland population of quokkas in Two Peoples Bay; however, here the predation threat is a lot higher, particularly from foxes and domestic cats. The animals, therefore, require dense vegetation for cover. On the mainland the quokka are sympatric with Gilbert's Potoroo, another marsupial, sometimes called a rat-ka"center">Sirenia