The Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat

It’s time to revisit our dear friends, the wombats.  Although this blog featured a post about the living wombats in general and a post about the extinct giant wombats which once roamed Australia, we have not concentrated individually on the extant species.  Today we will remedy that oversight by writing about the northern hairy-nosed wombat (Lasiorhinus krefftii) which is one of the world’s rarest large mammals.  The hairy-nosed wombat is the largest of the world’s three wombat species weighing up to 32 kgs (about 70 pounds).  The animal also has longer ears and softer (grayer) fur than other wombats but its behavior and general lifestyle is very similar to its relatives.

Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat (Lasiorhinus krefftii)

Although the hairy-nosed wombat is one of the most efficient of all mammals in turns of water consumption, the continuing desertification of Australia hit its territory hard and caused the species to decline.  The animal was already rare when English settlers came to the island continent and the population dropped even further when forced to compete with European predators and farm animals and contend with habitat loss to farming and development.  Perhaps most seriously (and insidiously) the grasses which the wombats prefer to graze are being replaced by invasive species.  By the 1970s, the entire species probably only numbered around 20 or 30 individuals.

Range of the Northern Hairy-Nosed Wombat (exaggerated to be visible)

Today the hairy-nosed wombat numbers between 100 and 150 in the wild.  The creatures were long confined to a habitat about the size of Central Park (approximately 3 square kilometers) although a second wombat preserve has recently been created for them. Australians are kind people who have been trying hard to save the fetching whisker-nosed marsupial, but the fate of the species is still unclear.

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