Perameles gunnii Gray, 1838
Eastern Barred Bandicoot
Species recognized by The Integrated Taxonomic Information System
, T Orrell (custodian) in 
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Overview
Biology
Source and Additional Information
This solitary, nocturnal species shelters by day in a simple ground nest of grasses, leaves and twigs, generally under some form of vegetation cover, and emerges at dusk to forage for food (2) (5). Abandoned rabbit burrows are also sometimes used as daytime refuges (5). This omnivorous opportunist feeds at night on a wide range of invertebrates and plants, most of which are found in the soil or leaf-litter (1) (2). The animal's strong claws and long slender snout are used to dig small conical holes in the ground, from which its quarry is extracted (4). Food items include grubs, earthworms, beetles, grasshoppers, adult weevils, insect larvae and slugs, as well as roots, berries, grasses, mosses and seeds (4) (5).
Individuals come together to breed, but only one adult bandicoot occupies a nest (4). Young are born from June to February in Tasmania and at any time of the year on mainland Australia (5). A female may produce as many as three to four litters during a year in favourable conditions, each litter typically containing one to four young. The reproductive rate is high, but so too is the juvenile mortality rate. Young remain in the mother's pouch for around 55 days and in the nest for a week or two after that (4). Both sexes begin to breed at four months of age (1).
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"Perameles gunnii Gray, 1838". Encyclopedia of Life, available from "http://www.eol.org/pages/323869". Accessed
17 Mar 2010.
