Eastern Quoll
The eastern quoll (Dasyurus viverrinus) is a small, spotted marsupial carnivore that disappeared from mainland Australia in the 1960s and survives in the wild only in Tasmania. It is listed as Endangered.
The eastern quoll (Dasyurus viverrinus) is a small, spotted marsupial carnivore that disappeared from mainland Australia in the 1960s and survives in the wild only in Tasmania. It is listed as Endangered.
🧬 Field Guide Specimen: Open Eastern Quoll in the CRV Science Field Guide to log the specimen, see its place among the Mammals lineages in the Cladogram Explorer, and test your recall in the Red List conservation game.
Two Colors, One Species
Eastern quolls come in fawn and black color forms, both with white spots. They hunt insects, small mammals and carrion at night, and can climb. Females have a pouch that opens backward and may carry six young.
A Tasmanian Refuge Under Pressure
Introduced foxes, disease and loss of habitat caused the mainland extinction, and quolls in Tasmania have also declined in recent decades. See Tiger Quoll.
Returning to the Mainland
Conservationists have released captive-bred quolls into fenced, fox-free reserves, with trial releases on the mainland since 2016, as a test of rewilding with predator control.
Eastern Quoll at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Dasyurus viverrinus |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Mammalia |
| Order | Dasyuromorphia |
| Family | Dasyuridae |
| Field Guide group | Mammals: Marsupialia (Metatherians) |
| Diagnostic feature (Field Guide) | Spotted nocturnal predator with sharp carnassial-like teeth; fawn or black fur with white spots but no spots on the tail. |
| IUCN Red List status | Endangered (EN), assessed 2016 |
| Colors | Fawn and black morphs |