Bandicoot

A bandicoot is a small marsupial of Australia. They have a small
snout, brown or Grey fur, longish tail and short legs. On the feet
of bandicoots, the second and third toes are joined. Their fur is
short and spiny, ( all except the Rabbit Eared bandicoot, which has  [Image]
soft and silky fur.)A bandicoot's pouch faces backwards, so if the
mother bandicoot is digging no dirt goes in the pouch. There are
eleven species of bandicoot.

                            Long Nosed Bandicoots

   All long nosed bandicoots have longer snouts than all other species of
   bandicoot. They have a long slender body covered with a coat of rough,
    bristly fur. Like all bandicoots they are solitary creatures and all
   bandicoots will chase other bandicoots away. At mating time females are
    welcome into the territory of a male bandicoot. Bandicoots have large
   territories and most of the time, the males have a larger one than the
      females. Sometimes the male's territory spreads over nine female
                                territories!

                                  Golden Bandicoot

         The golden bandicoot hides sleeping during the day among a nest of
         twigs, grass, leaves and other ground litter. The Golden bandicoot
             will usually walk on all fours, but sometimes the male in
          particular may hop on his hind legs. Golden bandicoots may breed
[Image]    any time of the year. The breeding season may last up to eight
         months, especially when there is lots of food. Fourteen days after
        mating the female bandicoot gives birth to two to four tiny, partly
         developed naked Golden bandicoots. They are each about the size of
            a five cent piece and live in the pouch until they are fully
                                    developed.

                          The Pig Footed Bandicoot

The Pig Footed Bandicoot is an extremely rare species of bandicoot. It is so
rare there has been no sightings reported on them since 1926. It is slightly
smaller than a rabbit and very graceful. It has long slender limbs and
narrow ears. It does not hop, but it uses a running motion instead. The
front feet of the bandicoot, are rather unusual, only the second and third
toes are big when the fourth is small and that makes the feet look rather
like a hoof. It has to burrow it's way in and out of the nest, because there
is no real opening of the nest.

                           Rabbit Eared Bandicoots

The Rabbit Eared Bandicoot is a species of bandicoot, unlike any other type.
It has long, soft, silken blue-Grey fur and long rabbit like ears. They have
a tail that is black up the top and white along the outer half. At the very
tip of the tail there is a furless horn shaped spur. The Rabbit Eared
bandicoot is the only species of bandicoot that lives in burrows. They use
their powerful fore-paws which have strong, sharp claws to scratch away at
the dirt. Then they use both their hind legs to shovel all the dirt out of
the burrow. The burrow is usually one to two meters deep, so that the
bandicoot is protected from high temperatures. There is only ever one one
bandicoot in each burrow. Rabbit Eared Bandicoots have large canine teeth
which they use to capture live prey such as insects, insect larvae and small
mice. Rabbit Eared bandicoots are active during day as well as night, unlike
other species of bandicoot. However the bandicoots eye- sight is not very
good in day light and they need to rely on their sense of smell to find
food. At night the the bandicoots can find food with their keen sense of
hearing. The only noise a Rabbit Eared Bandicoot is known to make is a
hissing sound they make as they breath in when they are startled.

                           Short Nosed Bandicoots

Short nosed bandicoots are usually sturdily built with a stout head, short
round ears and a small snout. They have harsh, spiny hairs which grow out of
softer fur that is underneath. Short nosed bandicoots don't usually live in
burrows, instead they make nests out of grass, twigs and leaves, which help
to camouflage with all the surroundings. Short nosed bandicoots are very
common in some areas and there is no danger of them becoming extinct.

                           A Bandicoot's Skeleton

A bandicoot's skeleton is very like a kangaroos, only much smaller. They
have the same type of bones as us like a rib cage, legs, arms, feet, skull
and many others.

To find your way through the maze of the Bandicoot's tunnel, click here.

By Heidi and Cassandra.

                        Index of Australian Animals.

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