Creature Feature: The Numbat

Conservation, Nature, Weird Stuff, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 23rd, 2010, 0

This week’s Creature Feature is about a marsupial that, although may be a symbol of Western Australia, it may not be so well-known to the rest of the world. The Numbat, or Banded Ant Eater, is the only member of the Myrmecobiidae family. This furry little creature ranges between 13 and 18 inches (35-45 cm) in length, comes in a variety of colors (ranging from grey to reddish-brown and with a lighter underside) and can be recognized by its tail and stripes. Numbats love to feast on termites—in fact, one adult Numbat can eat up to 20,000 termites every day!…

Tags: australia, Banded Ant Eater, Conservation, Creature Feature, decreasing, endangered species, introduced species, marsupial, Numbat, population decline, predators, termites, Western Australia, wildfires