Bribled Nailtail Wallaby

Appearance   
           The Bridled Nailtail Wallaby is one of three species of Nailtail Wallabies with the Cresent Nailtail Wallaby extinct. It was once thought extinct until a population was found near the town of Dingo Queensland. It has a clearly identifing white bridle line running from the centre of the neck down to the side of the body. The tail has a distinctive horny pointed nail at the tip of the tail which gave it its name. and it can measure up to 540 millimetres.

 


Weight
The bridled nail-tailed wallaby weighs 4 to 8 kg.
Length
The males can reach a lenght of 700 milimetres and the females can reach 540 millimetres.

Breeding Habits
The young of the bridled nail-tailed wallaby is usually born in May and only 1 young is born each season.

Eating and Diet habits
Its diet consist mainly of the roots of various species of coarse grass, herbs and shrubs.

Predators
    The Bridled Nailtail Wallaby has to compete with sheep and rabbits for food and is hunted by predators like foxes and feral cats.

Habitat
It previously occupied Acacia shrubland and grassy woodland in semi-arid regions. Currently it shelters by day in the edges of brigalow scrubs and feeds by night in the more open surrounding grassy eucalypt woodlands. There have been few sightings recorded in cleared areas except during drought.

Remaining Locations
It was rediscovered in 1973 in a 100 sq km area in central Queensland near Dingo. In 1981, it was reported to be common over an area of about 11,000 hectares. By 1996 the only known significant population occurred in and around Taunton National Park near Dingo.

Numbers
Today only one population of around 400 animals remains in remnant brigalow scrubs of Taunton National Park, central Queensland.

Problems

  • In Queensland the clearing of 5,700,000 hectares of brigalow and softwood scrubs has reduced the area of this wallaby's preferred habitat by around 95%.
  • The removal of cover by sheep, cattle and rabbits, combined with droughts, has left Bridled Nailtails vulnerable to predation by feral cats and foxes. 
  • shooting for fur and as a pest species.
  • competition from introduced rabbits
  • Competition with domestic grazing stock, especially sheep

Solutions

  • Maintain the existing Taunton population. 
  • Establish new populations of Nailtails in other areas of suitable habitat.
  • Control cats, foxes and dingoes.
  • inform the public about threatened species issues.
  • encourage habitat retention and restoration.
  • encourage the community-based collection of more information about the species and its habitat.
  • ongoing habitat management.
  • ongoing monitoring and biological studies.
  • genetic assessment of all populations.
  • support your local environment groups.
  • raise money for the rehabilitation of sites for Bridled Nailtail Wallaby .
  • learn more about endangered animals, particularly those native to your area.
  • be a responsible pet owner so they do not impact on Bridled Nailtail Wallaby  or other wildlife.
  • help in the eradication of foxes, cats and rabbits.
  • protect remnant native vegetation under Heritage Agreement and by excluding stock .
  • revegetate cleared land with indigenous plants.