Marsupials Animals

Tree-kangaroos are macropods adapted for life in trees. They are found in the rainforests of New Guinea, far northeastern Queensland, and nearby islands, usually in mountainous areas. Although most are found in mountainous areas, several species also occur in lowlands, such as the aptly named Lowlands Tree-kangaroo. Most tree-kangaroos are considered threatened due to hunting and habitat loss.

There are approximately 12 species of tree-kangaroos, though some uncertainty exists due to taxonomy. Depending on species, there are significant variations in the colour of the pelage and size, with a head and body length of , a tail length of , and a weight of up to . Females are smaller than males.

Marsupials are an infraclass of mammals, characterized by a distinctive pouch (called the marsupium), in which females carry their young through early infancy.

The Sugar Glider (Petaurus breviceps) is a small gliding marsupial originally native to eastern and northern mainland Australia, New Guinea, and the Bismarck Archipelago, and introduced to Tasmania, Australia.

The Tasmanian Devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) is a carnivorous marsupial now found in the wild only in the Australian island state of Tasmania. The Tasmanian Devil is the only extant member of the genus Sarcophilus. The size of a small dog, but stocky and muscular, the Tasmanian Devil is now the largest carnivorous marsupial in the world after the extinction of the Thylacine in 1936. It is characterized by its black fur, pungent odour when stressed, extremely loud and disturbing screech, and ferocity when feeding. It is known to both hunt prey and scavenge carrion and although it is usually solitary, it sometimes eats with other devils.

The Tasmanian Devil was extirpated on the Australian mainland at least 3000 years agoBrown O. 2006. Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) extinction on the Australian mainland in the mid-Holocene: multicausality and ENSO intensification. Alcheringa: An Australasian Journal of Paleontology 31:49-57 DOI 10.1080/03115510608619574, well before European settlement in 1788. Because they were seen as a threat to livestock in Tasmania, devils were hunted until 1941, when they became officially protected. Since the late 1990s, devil facial tumour disease has reduced the devil population significantly and now threatens the survival of the species, which in May 2009 was declared to be endangered. Programs are currently being undertaken by the Tasmanian government to reduce the impact of the disease.

The Thylacine (, or in Australia , also "thylacine." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 30 May. 2009. .) (binomial name: Thylacinus cynocephalus; Greek for "dog-headed pouched one") was the largest known carnivorous marsupial of modern times. It is commonly known as the Tasmanian Tiger (because of its striped back), the Tasmanian Wolf, and colloquially the Tassie (or Tazzy) Tiger or simply the Tiger.As well as the common alternative names, the Thylacine was referred to by a range of other names, which often makes clear identification of the species in historical records difficult. Other names by which it is occasionally identified include Marsupial Wolf, Hyena, Zebra Wolf, Kangaroo Wolf, Zebra Opossum, Marsupial Tiger, Tiger Cat, Tasmanian Pouched Wolf and Hyena Opossum. Native to continental Australia, Tasmania and New Guinea, it is thought to have become extinct in the 20th century. It was the last extant member of its genus, Thylacinus, although several related species have been found in the fossil record dating back to the early Miocene.

The Thylacine had largely become extremely rare or extinct on the Australian mainland before European settlement of the continent, but it survived on the island state of Tasmania along with several other endemic species, including the Tasmanian Devil. Intensive hunting encouraged by bounties is generally blamed for its extinction, but other contributory factors may have been disease, the introduction of dogs, and human encroachment into its habitat. Despite its official classification as extinct, sightings are still reported, though none proven.

Like the tigers and wolves of the Northern Hemisphere, from which it obtained two of its common names, the Thylacine was an apex predator. As a marsupial, it was not closely related to these placental mammals, but because of convergent evolution it displayed the same general form and adaptations. Its closest living relative is thought to be either the Tasmanian Devil or Numbat.

The Thylacine was one of only two marsupials to have a pouch in both sexes (the other being the Water Opossum). The male Thylacine had a pouch that acted as a protective sheath, protecting the male's external reproductive organs while running through thick brush.

Echidnas (), also known as spiny anteaters,http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/mammals/echidna/Echidnaprintout.shtml Retrieved on 21 October 2007 belong to the family Tachyglossidae in the monotreme order of egg-laying mammals. There are four extant species, which, together with the Platypus, are the only surviving members of that order and are the only extant mammals that lay eggs. "The Enigma of the Echidna" by Doug Stewart, National Wildlife, April/May 2003. Although their diet consists largely of ants and termites, they are only distantly related to the true anteaters of the Americas. They live in New Guinea and Australia. The echidnas are named after a monster in ancient Greek mythology.