Wombat
There are three main types of Wombat: the Common Wombat, the Southern Hairy-Nosed Wombat and the Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat. The Northern Hairy Nosed Wombat is extremely endangered and close to extinction.
The Common Wombat
The common wombat is a large and solidly built burrowing marsupial. It has long, thick and stiff fur which is patchy brown in colour. It has a large broad head with a flattened, exposed nose, small eyes and small ears. It also has a short tail, which is hidden by its fur. They are more bear - like than the koala.
The wombat lives in the bushland and forest areas of Australia, in Tasmania, Eastern Victoria, and along the Eastern ranges in NSW up towards Queensland.
Description
Wombats have very thick legs and strong and powerful claws, which they use to dig large burrows. They have 5 toes, the first toe of its back foot is just a stub, its second and third toes are joined together with a double claw which they use for grooming themselves. Their front legs are used for the digging, while the back legs push the soil away from the burrow entrance.
They usually dig their burrows in slopes above creeks or gullies. These burrows can be up to 30 metres long and have many entrances, nesting chambers and connecting tunnels. Smaller burrows between 2 and 5 metres long are only used as temporary refuges for these animals. Wombats live alone, but can use more than 10 burrows, sometimes visiting 1 - 4 burrows every night. If the ground is too hard they then choose to sleep in hollow logs or caves.
The wombat’s only natural enemy is the dingo, but they can usually avoid predator threats, and even small bushfires, by staying in their burrows.
History
The first Europeans to discover the wombat were shipwrecked sailors who were stranded on an island in Bass Strait in 1797. To survive they ate every type of animal on the island, including the wombat. Wombat meat tasted horrible as they are made up of mainly bone and gristle.
A year later when Matthew Flinders rescued the sailors, he bought a wombat back to show the governor of New South Wales. By then a former convict named James Wilson, employed by Governor Hunter, had seen wombats on an expedition to the Blue Mountains. The wombat was already going by the name that the local Aboriginal people called these strange, fluffy, burrowing bears – “whombatts”.
Diet
A wombat’s diet consists of roots, shoots, grasses and leaves. They are active at night, usually emerging in late afternoon to scavenge food for the evening and throughout the night. They usually groom themselves before eating. During the day they retreat into their burrows and sleep; sometimes lying on their backs with their four short, stubby feet sticking up in the air. They also snore and yawn during sleep!
In the colder months they move slowly, and in snow covered areas will look for the grass found at the base of the snow gum tree. They move very slowly through deep snow until they get to the tree and can feed off grass. Although wombats generally look slow and clumsy, they can reach speeds of up to 40 kph over short distances.
Breeding
A wombat is mature at 2 years. A male wombat will typically run after a female, making a track in the shape of a figure 8, until she allows him to mate. They breed all year round, peaking between September to November, and during winter time in Tasmania.
A wombat is born only 3 weeks after mating. Usually a single, blind and hairless baby is born, weighing about 0.5g and attaches itself to one of its mother’s 2 teats in her rear-opening pouch, where it will stay for up to 6 months. It then follows her around for another 11 months.
Females will mate again when the baby wombat has been weaned, and they usually give birth once every 2 years.
Wombats have a lifespan of about 15 years in the wild, and 20 years in captivity, however in areas where it’s arid and dry and there isn’t much grass around, they may live for as little as five years.
Some people in Australia keep wombats as pets, as they are not afraid of humans. They can often be found in camping grounds, living in the bushes right next camp sites. However, keeping a wombat as a pet is not good for your garden, and in the warmer areas they can carry lots of ticks.
They are protected in parts of Australia, mainly Western Victoria, but their numbers are declining rapidly due to habitat destruction, shooting, dog attacks, car accidents and bushfires. It’s actually very sad how few wombats there are left. In many areas in Australia there are simply not enough wombats to keep breeding.
Length: 0.8 - 1.2 m
Weight: 22 - 39 kg
Survival Status: Secure (But declining)
The Southern Hairy-Nosed Wombat
The Southern Hairy-Noised Wombat can only be found in the plains of South Australia, bordering the Great Australian Bight, and also on the South-West corner of Western Australia. It is similar in look to both the Common and Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat, being bulky, although it is generally a little smaller. It has brown fur, but the fur on its nose is white (Common Wombat has no fur on its nose). Its tail is shorter than the Common Wombat. Their diet consists of herbs and different types of grasses, and this Wombat rarely gets water to drink, and survives on water it obtains from the plants it eats.
This Wombat is mature at 3 years and mating generally takes place in the burrows. The male Southern Hairy-Nosed Wombat establishes hierarchies and is quite aggressive in the breeding season. This season is from September - December. They do not breed during droughts as they need 2-3 years of rainfall to successfully raise their young.
The Southern Hairy-Nosed Wombat has a lifespan in captivity of about 20 years and less in the wild. It is rare and endangered which is mainly due to land clearing, overgrazing and habitat destruction.
Length: 0.7 - 0.9 m
Weight: 19 - 32 kg
Survival Status: Endangered
The Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat
The Northern Hairy-Nosed wombat is nearly extinct and is confined solely to the Epping Forrest National Park, near Epping in Queensland. It is currently one of the rarest animals in the world. The fall in numbers in recent times can be attributed to loss of habitat to cattle, and its main predator the dingo. Recently the National Park has erected a fence to prevent dingos from entering and eating the wombats, as they did in early 2001, with an estimated 10% of the population of Northern Hairy-Nosed being lost to the dingos.
This species is the largest of the wombats and unlike the others they are not very sociable. They will live in large clusters of burrows, and there have even been records of two Wombats in the same burrow. This species of wombat will burrow close to trees where possible. It is nocturnal, and with the hot climate of the Epping National Park, this wombat will spend most of the day in burrows, only coming out in the cool night. On winter days it can be seen basking in the sun.
The Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat, like the Southern Hairy-Nosed Wombat also requires very little water and enjoys eating various grasses. They usually eat for up to six hours a night in winter months, and only two hours in the summer months. This is most likely due to the hot climate.
Their life span is about 20 years, however in captivity this can extend to up to 26 years.
In 1971 The Epping National Forrest was established as a safe haven for the nearly extinct Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat.
Length: 1 m – 1.2 m
Weight: 30 kg
Survival Status: Nearly Extinct