Quokka

Type: mammal

Length: 50 cm

Weight: 3 kg

Lifespan: 10 years

Diet: Plant eaters

Description: The Quokka, Setonix brachyurus, was described by early Dutch explorer, Willem de Vlamingh, 'as a kind of rat as big as a common cat'. His first sighting of the Quokka was on an island off the mouth of the Swan River. He named the island Rottenest ('rat nest') in honour of this sighting. The island is now known as Rottnest Island. Essentially the Quokka looks very much like other wallabies.It has short, very coarse and thick grey-brown fur over most of the body with lighter parts underneath. Its facial features consist of a naked nose on a short, broad face with rounded furry ears.The tail is relatively short and mostly devoid of hair. In contrast, the hair on the feet extends to cover its claws. Quokkas have a promiscuous mating system.After a month of gestation, females give birth to a single baby called a joey. Females can give birth twice a year and produce about 17 joeys during their lifespan. The joey lives in its mother's pouch for six months. Once it leaves the pouch, the joey relies on its mother for milk for two more months and is fully weaned around eight months after birth. Females sexually mature after roughly 18 months. When a female quokka with a joey in her pouch is pursued by a predator, she may drop her baby onto the ground; the joey produces noises which may serve to attract the predator's attention, while the mother escapes.

Found in: Rottnest Island and a few places on mainland Western Australia