🐙 Cell & Organismal Biology
Fat-tailed Dunnart
The fat-tailed dunnart (Sminthopsis crassicaudata) is a tiny, mouse-like marsupial of the arid grasslands and deserts of Australia. Its carrot-shaped tail stores fat for lean times.
The fat-tailed dunnart (Sminthopsis crassicaudata) is a tiny, mouse-like marsupial of the arid grasslands and deserts of Australia. Its carrot-shaped tail stores fat for lean times.
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A Fat Reserve Tail
In good seasons the tail swells with fat, then shrinks when food is scarce. The dunnart feeds on insects, spiders and small lizards at night.
Saving Energy by Torpor
Dunnarts enter torpor daily, lowering their metabolism and body temperature to save energy. They sometimes bask in the morning sun to warm up quickly.
Small Carnivorous Marsupials
Dunnarts belong to Dasyuridae with quolls and Tasmanian devils. See Tasmanian Devil.
Fat-tailed Dunnart at a Glance
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Scientific name | Sminthopsis crassicaudata |
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Mammalia |
| Infraclass | Marsupialia |
| Order | Dasyuromorphia |
| Family | Dasyuridae |
| Field Guide group | Mammals: Marsupialia (Metatherians) |
| Diagnostic feature (Field Guide) | Mouse-sized nocturnal Australian desert hunter with large pointed ears, polyprotodont needle-sharp teeth for crunching beetles, and a carrot-shaped tail that swells with stored fat. |
| IUCN Red List status | Least Concern (LC), assessed 2016 |
| Family | Dasyuridae |
| Tail | Stores fat |
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