| Potoroos[1] | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Potorous platyops | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Diprotodontia |
| Family: | Potoroidae |
| Subfamily: | Potoroinae |
| Tribe: | Potoroini Gray, 1821 |
| Genus: | Potorous Desmarest, 1804.[2] |
| Type species | |
| Didelphis murina | |
| Species | |
Potoroo is a common name for species ofPotorous, agenus of smaller marsupials. They are allied to theMacropodiformes, the suborder of kangaroo, wallaby, and other rat-kangaroo genera and is the only genus in the tribePotoroini. All three extant species arethreatened by ecological changes since the colonisation of Australia, especially the long-footed potorooPotorous longipes (endangered) andP. gilbertii (critically endangered). The broad-faced potorooP. platyops disappeared after its first description in the 19th century. The main threats are predation byintroduced species (especially foxes) andhabitat loss.
Potoroos were formerly very common in Australia, and early settlers reported them as being significant pests to their crops.
Gilbert's potoroo was first described in theWest in 1840 by naturalistJohn Gilbert. It was then thought to have become extinct until being rediscovered in 1994 at theTwo Peoples Bay Nature Reserve (nearAlbany) inWestern Australia. Conservation efforts have grown an initial wild population of 30–40 to over 100.[3] All species ofPotorous are well within the "critical weight range" for mammals in Australia, those weighing from 35 to 4,200 grams (0.077 to 9.3 lb; 1.2 to 150 oz) whose trajectory was toward decline or extinction during British settlement.[4]
Potoroo comes fromDharugbadaru.[5]
A genus of smallermacropodids, it gives its name to the familyPotoroidae. The species ofPotorous have been greatly impacted or become extinct since their first descriptions, which has presented difficulties in determining the diversity of the genus. The number of species described by 1888 was five, when a revision byOldfield Thomas merged this to three species.[6][7]
The genus was namedPotorous byAnselme Gaëtan Desmarest in 1804, an epithet that was replaced byIlliger with the nameHypsiprymnus and cited by subsequent authors despite the protest of Desmarest. Oldfield Thomas saw no basis for this substitution and recognisedPotorous in 1888.[7]
The common names for the species include rat-kangaroo, kangaroo rat, and potoroo.
The genus is allied with the extantBettongia andAepyprymnus, which along with the familyHypsiprymnodontidae, are informally grouped as the 'rat-kangaroos' of the suborderMacropodiformes.
A conservative arrangement with allied modern and fossil genera may be summarised as:[8][9]
The long-nosed potoroo sniffs the ground with a side to side motion near the vicinity of food. Once the long-nosed potoroo has located a possible food source (with its sense of smell), it positions itself to begin excavating with its fore paws.[10]
The skull of potoroos may be either narrow and elongated, as in the extantP. gilbertii,P. longipes,P. tridactylus, or broad and flattened, a feature of the extinctP. platyops.Anexternal occipital crest is strongly defined, particularly in the males, and there is no apparentsagittal crest in the species cranial morphology.Potorous skulls have shallow and flattenedauditory bullae.The dentition is distinguished by sharp and strong canines, the broad permanent premolars are long and low with a profile that is serrated, concave, or horizontal at the cutting edge.An acutely pointed incisor extends from the long and narrow lower mandible.Thedental formula of the genus is the same as other potoroid taxa: I3/1 C1/0 PM1/1 M4/4. Two premolars in juveniles are replaced by a permanentsectorial premolar.[8]
The first depiction of a potoroo species was published in 1790 byJohn White in hisJournal of a Voyage to Botany Bay, the caption describing the animal as a "Poto Roo". The artwork was produced bySarah Stone.
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