Red-tailed Phascogale

Weight:
The female red-tailed phascogale weighs 36 - 48 g (average 43 g) (1.3 - 1.7 oz (average 1.5 oz)); males weigh 39 - 68 g (average 60 g) (1.4 - 2.4 oz (average 2.1 oz)). 

Habitat:
Most information on habitat relates to the wheatbelt. No specific habitat information is available for the arid zone or the southern and eastern semi-arid zone.

The red-tailed phascogale prefers rock oak communities, with hollow-forming eucalyptus species (which it uses for shelter) such as wandoo, in areas that receive 350 - 600 mm (14 - 24 in) of rain per year.

Most of the reserves where the red-tailed phascogale is more commonly found have not been burned for many years (20 years or more) and, as a consequence, carry a climax vegetation community which provides it with potential nest sites and with sufficiently dense foliage for protection and foraging. Its preferred habitat appears to be the denser and taller climax vegetation communities that include species of plants that produce the chemical monosodium fluoroacetate, which can be lethal to sheep and cattle. 

The red-tailed phascogale occurs in the Southwest Australian Shrublands & Woodlands Global 200 Ecoregion. (Olson & Dinerstein 1998, Olson & Dinerstein 1999)

Gestation Period:
28 - 30 days. 

Birth Season:
Mating occurs during a 3-week period in July. (Bradley in Strahan 1995)

In Western Australia, females give birth between mid-June and mid-August. (Menkhorst 1995) 

Birth Rate:
There are 3 to 8 young per litter (average 7.5), and 1 litter per year. 

Maximum Age:
Male red-tailed phascogales live slightly less than 1 year in the wild. Some females live long enough to reproduce in a second or third season. 

Diet:
The red-tailed phascogale is an opportunistic feeder, taking a wide range of insects and spiders, small birds and small mammals (particularly the house mouse). It does not need to drink, obtaining water from its food. 

Behavior:
The red-tailed phascogale is arboreal. Since it can make leaps of up to 2 m (6.6'), it can travel through the canopy relatively easily. It also feeds extensively on the ground. Although mainly nocturnal, it sometimes is seen during the day investigating potential food sources. Its nest of leaves and twigs is usually constructed in the forks or holes of trees, or in the skirts of live and stumps of dead grass trees. Many of these are in highly flammable locations. 

Mortality/Survival:
All wild male red-tailed phascogales die after mating (age 11.5 months).