Eastern Barred Bandicoot

... Perameles gunnii
 
On Monday night we were honored by a visit from an Eastern barred bandicoot. In the nine years at my current domicile we have had some good views of the more common Southern brown bandicoot but this was our first encounter with this small nocturnal marsupial (a bit smaller than a rabbit).

Eastern barred bandicoot, Perameles gunnii, in the backyard

It was first spotted, from the lounge room window, hopping about in the the front garden. It then made it's way up the driveway to the backyard. I grabbed the camera and we went out to have a closer look. We soon found it foraging away under the Nectarine tree. That's when I discovered I had no memory card in the camera. I watched it for 2 or 3 minutes while someone ran back to the house for the memory card. It just stayed there going about it's business only a couple of metres away. Of course, once the camera was set up and ready, the bandicoot's sixth sense (camera detection and aversion) kicked in and it started getting nervous. The end result was one useable but blurry photo and one wonderfully clear recollection of the encounter.

The Eastern barred bandicoot is extinct in South Australia. In Victoria it is 'critically endangered'. Here in Tasmania it has already disappeared from some areas and overall numbers have declined since the early 1990's. Fortunately it is still common in some localities. What a privilege it is to find it in my own backyard.

Below is a photo of the more common Southern brown bandicoot, also taken in the backyard.

Southern brown bandicoot, Isoodon obesulus

Linked to Saturday's Critters  and Camera Critters