Tuesday, January 13, 2009

The Wombat

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This cute chunky marsupial is a common wombat, native to Australia. The average adult weighs 55lbs. Wombat moms only have one baby after a 30 day gestation period. The baby wombat stays in the mother's pouch for 6 months and leaves mom at 18 months.

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As you may be able to guess by the nose, wombats are closely related to koala bears, the main difference being that wombats live on the ground. They are nocturnal mammals that live in tunnels which they are great at digging. A nest of tree bark serves as a bed at the end of the tunnel.

Wombats have beaver-like teeth and sharp claws. Their digging skills have made them a pest to farmers as the wombat damages crops and breaks fences. They feed mainly on grasses, sedges, herbs, bark and roots. Their digestion is very slow (14 days) and thus they generally move slowly. But if necessary, they can run rather fast.

There are 3 main types of wombat.

The Common Wombat

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The Souther Hairy-nosed Wombat

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The Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat

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Wombats prefer to be solitary but can be tamed in captivity. It isn't recommended that you try to hug one in the wilds. These choppers can do some damage. They are strong animals. One way they defend themselves if attacked in their tunnel is to squish the attacker against the top of the tunnel, until it stops breathing.

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The wombats primary defense is it's butt. Yes, I said butt, which is mostly made of cartilage. If an enemy follows the wombat into it's tunnel, the wombat bares it's butt which is impervious to bites.

Their average life-span in the wild is 5 years. They can live up to 30 years. Their natural enemies are tazmanian devils and eagles.

What a face!

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