Pig-footed bandicoot
Pig-footed bandicoot in LOST ZOO
For the first time since over 60 years Pig-footed bandicoots can be seen in our LOST ZOO. It is a nocturnal animal that sleeps in its shelter during the day and emerge in the evening to feed, using its keen sense of smell to find its food.
The Pig-footed bandicoot had a short, stiff coat that was grey or orange-brown on the upperparts and light brown below, with dark bars over the back, which may have acted as disruptive camouflage.
It had a long, pointed muzzle and long legs with only two functioning digits on each front foot, therefore the name ‘pig-footed’.
Using its sharp front claws, the Pig-footed bandicoot dug shallow, oval holes in which a nest created from twigs and grass was built.
The Pig-footed bandicoot is a small, ground-dwelling Australian marsupial. It uses its sharp front claws to dug shallow, oval holes in which a nest created from twigs and grass was built. It spends the day resting in these nests or in hollow logs, under stones or on grassy banks and is active during the night.
Shoulder height: 20 cm
Head-Body length: 25-50 cm
Body weight: 200 g
Habitat: Arid and semi-arid plains of Australia
Extinction: Numbers of the Pig-footed bandicoot were determined to be declining by the mid-19th century, and it was last seen in 1926 and by some Aborigines in a very remote part of the country in the 1950ies.
