Quokka
Setonix brachyurus
- Class
- Mammal
- Rarity
- Rare
- Observations
- 1,467
- Most observed in
- 🇦🇺 Australia
- Conservation
- Vulnerable
Description
The quokka (; Setonix brachyurus) is a small macropod about the size of a domestic cat. It is the only member of the genus Setonix. Like other marsupials in the macropod family (such as kangaroos and wallabies), the quokka is herbivorous and mainly nocturnal. The quokka's range is a small area of southwestern Australia. They inhabit some smaller islands off the coast of Western Australia, particularly Rottnest Island just off Perth and Bald Island near Albany. Isolated, scattered populations also exist in forest and coastal heath between Perth and Albany. A small colony inhabits a protected area of Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve, where they coexist with the critically endangered Gilbert's potoroo.
Summary adapted from the Wikipedia article “Quokka”.