Little bettong
| Little bettong | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Diprotodontia |
| Family: | Potoroidae |
| Genus: | Bettongia |
| Species: | †B. haoucharae
|
| Binomial name | |
| †Bettongia haoucharae Newman-Martin, Travouillon, & Warburton, 2025
| |
The little bettong (Bettongia haoucharae) is an extinct potoroid marsupial from southern and central Australia.[1] The species is only known from subfossil and mummified remains found throughout the Nullarbor Plain's and Great Victoria Desert. Specific epithet "haoucharae" is to honour Dalal Haouchar,[1] whose work on bettongs revealed genetic differences in samples taken from Nullarbor subfossils.[2]
Extinction
It is unknown what caused the extinction of the little bettong, but based on the timing of its extinction and the decline of similar potoroid species, it is believed to be predation by cats and foxes.[1] The species has never been collected alive by western science, but was known by Aboriginal peoples to have occurred in central Australia until 1960,[3] however these reports could also represent the desert bettong (Bettongia anhydra).[1] The last reports of the little bettong by residents on the Nullarbor occurred during the late 1930s.[4]
References
- ^ a b c d Newman-Martin, Jake; Travouillon, Kenny J.; Warburton, Natalie; Barham, Milo; Blyth, Alison J. (2025-09-05). "A taxonomic revision of the Bettongia penicillata (Diprotodontia: Potoroidae) species complex and description of the subfossil species Bettongia haoucharae sp. nov". Zootaxa. 5690 (1): 1–69. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.5690.1.1. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 41119736.
- ^ Haouchar, Dalal; Pacioni, Carlo; Haile, James; McDowell, Matthew C.; Baynes, Alexander; Phillips, Matthew J.; Austin, Jeremy J.; Pope, Lisa C.; Bunce, Michael (2016-12-01). "Ancient DNA reveals complexity in the evolutionary history and taxonomy of the endangered Australian brush-tailed bettongs (Bettongia: Marsupialia: Macropodidae: Potoroinae)". Biodiversity and Conservation. 25 (14): 2907–2927. doi:10.1007/s10531-016-1210-y. ISSN 1572-9710.
- ^ Burbidge, A. A.; Johnson, K. A.; Fuller, P. J.; Southgate, R. I. (1988-01-01). "Aboriginal knowledge of the mammals of the central deserts of Australia". Wildlife Research. 15 (1): 9–39. doi:10.1071/WR9880009. ISSN 1035-3712.
- ^ [Richards, J.D., and Short, J. (1996). History of the disappearance of native fauna from the Nullarbor Plain through the eyes of long-time resident Amy Crocker. The Western Australian Naturalist 21(2): 89–96. "History of the disappearance of native fauna from the Nullarbor Plain through the eyes of long-time resident Amy Crocker"]. The Western Australian Naturalist.
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