Help save the Spotted-tailed Quoll

By:AG Society | June-24-2009

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Help the AG Society to safeguard our Quolls.

Spotted-tailed Quoll

WHAT Spotted-tailed Quoll Dasyurus maculatus maculatus

WHERE East coast of Australia, from southern Queensland to Tasmania

WHY The spotted-tailed quoll is the second largest of the world’s surviving carnivorous marsupials (the Tasmanian devil holds the title). Once abundant along the east coast of Australia, this nocturnal species has endured a serious fall in numbers. More than 50 per cent of the spotted-tailed quoll’s habitat in northern Tasmania has been cleared, leading to population declines similar to that on the mainland.

Nationally, the spotted-tailed quoll is listed as endangered, although it’s still considered common in Tasmania. Habitat loss is a major concern – it leads to diminishing feeding grounds and the fragmentation of breeding populations. Feral cats and foxes compete with the quoll for food. These introduced predators have ravaged quoll populations.

In order to safeguard our quolls, we need to learn much more about these mysterious marsupials. University of Tasmania PhD candidate, Shannon Troy, will study populations of spotted-tailed quolls in north-western Tasmania to uncover their secrets. The results of her research will assist in the protection of quoll populations across Tasmania and mainland Australia.

Help save the spotted-quoll DONATE $2 or more so the AG Society can raise $20,000 to help save the spotted-Quoll population of Australia.

What's next?
Quolls and the baiting issue

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Comments 11

IheartQuolls

15 Jul 2009

Hi AG, do the Quolls suffer from fox baiting in tas too? Report
AmyM

20 Jul 2009

iheartquolls, thanks for the question!

We tracked down an expert to answer it. Click on the link at the bottom of the article for the response.

Amy Report
de

08 Sep 2009

cute Report
quoll

24 Oct 2009

I am doing a project on quolls and I am really interested in finding a lot more about them. I have seen many pictures and I think thy are adorable! I was wondering, what is their the rate of their reproduction? Report
AnimalLover

31 Oct 2009

Hi,
I love quolls allot,
Are there any other types of quoll other then the Northern, Eastern and Spotted-Tailed still surviving?
Thanks. Report
Quoll_Girl

05 Nov 2009

Hi QUOLL,

Spotted-tailed quolls can breed once a year; females have 6 teats and so can have up to 6 young in the pouch. In the wild, females may not have young every year, and when they do have young they might not wean all of them. Quolls also only live around 4 or 5 years, so each female might produce as few as two or three young over their lifetime. This means that losing one or two females from a quoll population now can make a big difference to the size of the population in the future. Report
Quoll_Girl

05 Nov 2009

Hi ANIMALLOVER,

In Australia, as well as the spotted-tailed quoll, eastern quoll and northern quoll, there is also the western quoll. Papua New Guinea also has two types of quoll that are very closely related to Australia's quoll: the bronze quoll and the new guinean quoll. Report
Jennylee

07 Nov 2009

Hi

do you know of anyone doing quoll research around the newcastle area? Report
nat

29 Apr 2010

yes, there is the New Guinean Quoll (living in new guinea), Western Quoll a.k.a Chuditch(western australia), and Bronze Quoll (New Guinea). Report
nat

29 Apr 2010

yes, there is the New Guinean Quoll (living in new guinea), Western Quoll a.k.a Chuditch(western australia), and Bronze Quoll (New Guinea). Report
louise

03 Mar 2011

Hi i am lening about spotted quoll at school. I saw 1 a spotted quoll at camp. did you no that the spotted quoll are endangered. I love the spotted quoll it is so cute
Report