The Tammar Wallaby (Macropus eugenii) is a small member of the kangaroo family and is the type species for research on kangaroos and marsupials.
They are found on offshore islands on the South Australian and Western Australian coast. They are classified as vermin on Kangaroo Island, where they seasonally breed up to large numbers and damage echidna habitat on the island.
Tammar Wallabies are also found in New Zealand where they were transported from the South Australian mainland population which has since been driven to extinction by feral cats and foxes.
Also known as the Darma Wallaby, the Tammar Wallaby's small size (approx 8kg, similar to a large cat) and ease of keeping in captivity makes it a popular zoo animal.
Wallabies are marsupials from the islands of Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand (introduced), and New Guinea.
TammarWallabies are also found in New Zealand where they were transported from the South Australian mainland population which has since been driven to extinction by feral cats and foxes.
Red-necked Wallabies (Bennett's) are distinguished by their fl nose and paws, white stripe on the upper lip, and grizzled medium grey coat with a reddish wash across the shoulders.
Eighty-five TammarWallabies were successfully repatriated from New Zealand in 2003-2004 and were held in quarantine for twelve months at the Monarto Zoological Gardens, pending a full assessment of their state of health.
In the case of TammarWallabies, this procedure entails the careful removal of small pouch young from the captive bred mainland Tammar mothers and the placement of these young into the pouches of Kangaroo Island Tammars.
TammarWallabies are particularly susceptible to predators and it is highly likely that the Kangaroo Island wallabies would also be extinct today, if Foxes had established themselves on Kangaroo Island.
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