Tammar Wallaby

One of the smallest wallaby species, the tammar wallaby features a proportionally small head with large ears, and an elongated tail, with a thick base. It has dark greyish upperparts with a paler underside and rufous-coloured sides and limbs. The tammar wallaby exhibits great sexual dimorphism, males reaching 9.1 kg (20 lb) in weight compared to 6.9 kg (15 lb) for females. Males are 59 to 68 cm (23–27 in) long while females are 52 to 63 cm (20–25 in), while both sexes stand 45 cm (18 in) tall. The tail has a length of 34 to 45 cm (13–18 in) for males and 33 to 44 cm (13–17 in) for females.

Locomotion. As with most macropods, the tammar wallaby moves around by hopping. This species typically leaps 0.8 to 2.4 m (2.6–7.9 ft) with 3.5 landings per second. Proximal muscles at the knee and hip joints provide the power for each leap, which shifts to the ankle muscles as the animal pushes off. As it lands, the energy of the jump is converted into strain energy made when its leg tendons are stretched. As it leaps back off the ground, the tammar wallaby can recover much of this energy for reuse through elastic recoil. When on the move, animal's respiration is tied to its hopping cycle, inhaling when leaping and exhaling when landing. …

During the day, tammar wallabies stay close to scrub for shade and move out to more open grassland by nightfall.In winter their home ranges are about 16 ha (40 acres), but in the dry summers they range further afield to search for quality food, needing about 42 ha (100 acres) of space. Tammar wallaby home ranges overlap with those of conspecifics. Like all macropods, the tammar wallaby is herbivorous. They are known to both graze and browse, but the latter is less effective, as they commonly drop leaves when chewing on them. When eating large leaves, tammar wallabies handle them with their fingers. Tammar wallabies consume several plant species such as heart-leaved poison (Gastrolobium bilobum), small-flowered wallaby grass (Austrodanthonia setacea), and marri (Corymbia calophylla). They survive on several islands that have no fresh water, subsisting on seawater.

Tammar wallabies gather into groups which lessens the chance of an individual being taken by a predator. As the group increases in size, tammar wallabies spend more time feeding, grooming, and interacting and less time being vigilant and moving around. They are also more likely to rest on their sides rather than in a more alert posture where their head is held up. Predators of the tammar wallaby include dingoes, feral cats, red foxes and wedge-tailed eagles. They may also have been preyed upon by the extinct thylacine. …