Marsupial Moles pop up in the great Victorian and Gibson Deserts

Abstract

MARSUPIAL moles (Notoryctes spp.) remain one of the great enigmas of the Australian fauna. Their occurrence is highly sporadic, resulting in a slow trickle of specimens to Museums at the rate of around 5-15 per decade (Johnson 1995). Their small size, cryptic habits, remote distribution and wariness have led to few reported sightings. In addition, the difficulty of keeping captive Notoryctes has restricted the collection of basic biological information (Howe 1975; Corbett 1975; Johnson and Walton 1989).