This is a list of the native mammals kept in Australian Zoos, the counterpart to this thread - Exotic Mammals in Australian Zoos Please comment with species missing (likely to be relatively few) or holdings that don't seem right (likely to be relatively many), and I will update the list. Because many species are very commonly kept, and it is not feasible to list all the collections they are found in, I have categorised species based on the number of zoos holding them: Species Holdings: 1-5 Collections – Rare (all holdings listed). 5-10 Collections – Uncommon 10-20 Collections – Common 20+ Collections – Very Common Monotremata: Tachyglossidae: -Short-beaked Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus Very Common Ornithorhynchidae: -Platypus Ornithorhynchus anatinus Uncommon - Australian Reptile Park, David Fleay Wildlife Park, Healesville Sanctuary, Lone Pine Koala Park, Melbourne Zoo, Platypus House, Taronga Zoo, Taronga Western Plains Zoo, Walkabout Creek Discovery Centre, Wildlife Sydney Marsupialia: Dasyuromorphia Myrmecobiidae: -Numbat Myrmecobius fasciatus Rare - Perth Zoo. Currently (January 2020) one also at the Alice Springs Desert Park (still?). Previously Australian Reptile Park, Healesville Sanctuary, and Wild Life Sydney have also held retired females from Perth Zoo. Dasyuridae: -Chuditch (Western Quoll) Dasyurus geoffroii Rare – Perth Zoo, Taronga Western Plains Zoo, Taronga Zoo -Northern Quoll Dasyurus hallucatus Rare - Daintree Wild Zoo (still?), Perth Zoo, Territory Wildlife Park -Spot-tailed (Tiger) Quoll Dasyurus maculatus Common -Eastern Quoll Dasyurus viverrinus Common -Dibbler Parantechinus apicalis Rare – Perth Zoo -Common Planigale Planigale maculata Rare – Territory Wildlife Park (still present Nov 2022) -Red-tailed Phascogale Phascogale calura Uncommon - Adelaide Zoo, Alice Springs Desert Park, Halls Gap Zoo, Perth Zoo, Sydney Zoo, Taronga Zoo, Territory Wildlife Park -Tasmanian Devil Sarcophilus harrisii Very Common -Fat-tailed Dunnart Sminthopsis crassicaudata Uncommon -Julia Creek Dunnart Sminthopsis douglasi Rare - Julia Creek Information Centre (?) -Brush-tailed Mulgara Dasycercus blythi Rare - Alice Springs Desert Park Peramelemorphia Peramelidae: -Golden Bandicoot Isoodon auratus Rare – Alice Springs Desert Park, Territory Wildlife Park -Northern Brown Bandicoot Isoodon macrourus Rare – Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, Kuranda Koala Gardens, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, Territory Wildlife Park, Wildlife Habitat, Yarra Valley Nocturnal Zoo -Southern Brown Bandicoot Isoodon obesulus Rare – Adelaide Zoo, Caversham Wildlife Park, Cleland Wildlife Park, East Coast Natureworld, Softfoot Sanctuary (Note that this species has been split into two species, eastern obesulus and western fusciventer, and the zoos generally do not specify which are held. Generally western zoos (e.g. Caversham) would hold the western species while eastern zoos (e.g. Cleland) would hold the eastern species). -Greater Bilby Macrotis lagotis Very Common -Eastern Barred Bandicoot Perameles gunnii Rare – Trowunna Wildlife Sanctuary, Wings Wildlife Park. [No longer at Healesville Sanctuary, Melbourne Zoo, or Werribee Open Range Zoo ?] -Long-nosed Bandicoot Perameles nasuta Rare – Australian Walkabout Wildlife Park, Taronga Zoo [Note: this species has now been split into two species, Northern pallescens and Southern nasuta - captive animals are the Southern species I think] Diprotodontia Phascolarctidae: -Koala Phascolarctos cinereus Very Common Vombatidae: -Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat Lasiorhinus latifrons Very Common -Common Wombat Vombatus ursinus Very Common Potoroidae: -Rufous Bettong Aepyprymnus rufescens Common -Eastern Bettong Bettongia gaimardi Rare – Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary, Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve, Trowunna Wildlife Park, Wings Wildlife Park -Burrowing Bettong Bettongia lesueur Rare – Alice Springs Desert Park -Brush-tailed Bettong Bettongia penicillata Uncommon -Northern Bettong Bettongia tropica Rare - Kuranda Koala Gardens, Wildlife Habitat -Long-nosed Potoroo Potorous tridactylus Common Macropodidae: -Lumholtz's Tree Kangaroo Dendrolagus lumholtzi Common – Billabong Sanctuary, Billabong Zoo, Currumbin Sanctuary, David Fleay Wildlife Park, Dreamworld, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, Oakvale Wildlife Park, Rainforestation Nature Park, Snakes Downunder, Walkabout Creek Discovery Centre, Wildlife Habitat, Wildlife HQ. -Spectacled Hare-wallaby Lagorchestes conspicillatus Rare – Territory Wildlife Park -Mala Lagorchestes hirsutus Rare – Alice Springs Desert Park -Agile Wallaby Macropus agilis Common -Antilopine Wallaroo Macropus antilopinus Rare – Crocodylus Park, Territory Wildlife Park -Black Wallaroo Macropus bernardus Rare – Territory Wildlife Park (still present Nov 2022) -Black-striped Wallaby Macropus dorsalis Rare – Phillip Island Wildlife Park -Tammar Wallaby Macropus eugenii Common -Western Grey Kangaroo Macropus fuliginosus Very Common -Eastern Grey Kangaroo Macropus giganteus Very Common -Western Brush Wallaby Macropus irma Rare – Bunbury Wildlife Park, Perth Zoo -Parma Wallaby Macropus parma Common -Whiptail Wallaby Macropus parryi Rare – were until recently kept at Darling Downs Zoo and Walkabout Creek Discovery Centre; now kept nowhere? -Common Wallaroo Macropus robustus Common -Red-necked Wallaby Macropus rufogriseus Very Common -Red Kangaroo Macropus rufus Very Common -Bridled Nailtail Wallaby Onychogalea fraenata Rare – David Fleay Wildlife Park -Northern Nailtail Wallaby Onychogalea unguifera Rare – Wildlife Habitat -Nabarlek Petrogale concinna Rare – one at Territory Wildlife Park -Black-footed Rock Wallaby Petrogale lateralis Rare – Australia Zoo, Monarto Zoo -Brush-tailed Rock Wallaby Petrogale penicillata Uncommon -Proserpine Rock Wallaby Petrogale persephone Rare – two pairs at David Fleay Wildlife Park -Yellow-footed Rock Wallaby Petrogale xanthopus Uncommon -Quokka Setonix brachyurus Common -Tasmanian Pademelon Thylogale billardierei Common -Red-legged Pademelon Thylogale stigmatica Uncommon -Red-necked Pademelon Thylogale thetis Uncommon -Swamp Wallaby Wallabia bicolor Very Common Burramyidae: -Mountain Pygmy Possum Burramys parvus Rare – Australian Reptile Park, Gumbuya Park, Healesville Sanctuary -Eastern Pygmy Possum Cercartetus nanus Rare – Australia Walkabout Wildlife Park (displayed on night tours), Trowunna Wildlife Park (off-display) Pseudocheiridae: -Greater Glider Petauroides volans Rare – Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, Taronga Zoo; [apparently no longer kept at David Fleay Wildlife Park] -Western Ringtail Possum Pseudocheirus occidentalis Rare - Caversham Wildlife Park, Peel Zoo, Perth Zoo -Common Ringtail Possum Pseudocheirus peregrinus Common Petauridae: -Striped Possum Dactylopsila trivirgata Rare – Walkabout Creek Discovery Centre. [No longer held at Wildlife Habitat (Port Douglas) as of a July 2022 report] -Leadbeater's Possum Gymnobelideus leadbeateri Rare – Healesville Sanctuary -Yellow-bellied Glider Petaurus australis Uncommon -Sugar Glider Petaurus breviceps Common [Note on Sugar Gliders: a 2020 paper split the Australian populations into three species - ariel, breviceps, and notatus - of which captive populations would be composed of the latter two. The abstract is here: Integrative taxonomic investigation of Petaurus breviceps (Marsupialia: Petauridae) reveals three distinct species] -Mahogany Glider Petaurus gracilis Rare – Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary (still?), Dreamworld, Kuranda Koala Gardens, Wildlife Habitat -Squirrel Glider Petaurus norfolcensis Common Acrobatidae: -Feathertail Glider Acrobates pygmaeus Uncommon [Note: now split into two species, the Narrow-toed Feathertail Glider A. pygmaeus and the Broad-toed Feathertail Glider A. frontalis. I don't know what the composition of the captive population is.] Phalangeridae: -Short-eared Brushtail Possum Trichosurus caninus Rare – Currumbin Sanctuary, David Fleay Wildlife Park, Wildlife HQ, Macadamia Castle [only on proper display at the last-named collection] -Common Brushtail Possum Trichosurus vulpecula Very Common -Northern Brushtail Possum Trichosurus arnhemensis Rare – Territory Wildlife Park Placentalia Chiroptera Pteropodidae: -Black Flying Fox Pteropus alecto gouldii Rare – Caversham Wildlife Park, Halls Gap Zoo, Phillip Island Wildlife Park, Territory Wildlife Park -Spectacled Flying Fox Pteropus conspicillatus Rare – Amazement Farm and Fun Park, Caversham Wildlife Park, Featherdale Wildlife Park, Hunter Valley Zoo, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, Wildlife Habitat -Grey-headed Flying Fox Pteropus poliocephalus Uncommon -Little Red Flying Fox Pteropus scapulatus Rare – Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary Megadermatidae: -Ghost Bat Macroderma gigas Uncommon - Adelaide Zoo, Alice Springs Desert Park, Currumbin Sanctuary, Featherdale, Gorge Wildlife Park, Perth Zoo, Sydney Zoo, Taronga Zoo, Territory Wildlife Park, Wildlife Sydney. Carnivora Canidae: -Dingo Canis lupus dingo Very Common Otariidae: -New Zealand Fur Seal Arctocephalus forsteri Rare – Sea World Gold Coast, Melbourne Zoo, Taronga Zoo, Underwater World (Mooloolaba) -Australian Fur Seal Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus Rare – Melbourne Zoo -Subantarctic Fur Seal Arctocephalus tropicalis Rare – Sea World Gold Coast, Taronga Zoo (still?), Underwater World (Mooloolaba) -Australian Sealion Neophoca cinerea Rare – Adelaide Zoo, Pet Porpoise Pool (Dolphin Marine Magic), Sea World Gold Coast, Taronga Zoo, Cetacea Delphinidae: -Common Bottle-nosed Dolphin Tursiops truncatus Rare – Sea World Gold Coast -Indo-Pacific Bottle-nosed Dolphin Tursiops aduncus Rare – Pet Porpoise Pool (Dolphin Marine Magic), Sea World Gold Coast Sirenia Dugongidae: -Dugong Dugong dugon Rare – one male at SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium (the female of the pair died in May 2018) Rodentia Muridae: -Australian Water Rat Hydromys chrysogaster Rare – Perth Zoo, Territory Wildlife Park, Wings Wildlife Park -Greater Stick-nest Rat Leporillus conditor Rare – Adelaide Zoo, Alice Springs Desert Park, Cleland Wildlife Park, Monarto Zoo, Taronga Zoo (still?) -Grassland Melomys Melomys burtoni Rare – Territory Wildlife Park -Black-footed Tree Rat Mesembriomys gouldii gouldii Rare – Adelaide Zoo, David Fleay Wildlife Park (still?), Perth Zoo, Sydney Zoo, Territory Wildlife Park -Spinifex Hopping Mouse Notomys alexis Common -Mitchell's Hopping Mouse Notomys mitchellii Rare – Kyabram Fauna Park, Melbourne Museum (off-display), Monarto Zoo (on display?) -Plains Rat Pseudomys australis Uncommon – Alice Springs Desert Park, Halls Gap Zoo, Mogo Zoo, Monarto Zoo (on display?), Taronga Zoo, Wildlife Sydney -New Holland Mouse Pseudomys novaehollandiae Rare – Melbourne Zoo, Moonlit Sanctuary -Smoky Mouse Pseudomys fumeus Rare – Healesville Sanctuary -Central Rock Rat Zyzomys pedunculatus Rare – Alice Springs Desert Park Species removed from the listings since 2014: -Kultarr Antechinomys laniger Alice Springs Desert Park -Crest-tailed Mulgara Dasycercus cristicauda Perth Zoo (2016?) -Stripe-faced Dunnart Sminthopsis macroura Alice Springs Desert Park (2017) -Sandhill Dunnart Sminthopsis psammophila Alice Springs Desert Park -Long-footed Potoroo Potorous longipes Healesville Sanctuary (single animal, arrived and died in 2022) -Short-eared Rock Wallaby Petrogale brachyotis Perth Zoo (the individual was originally misidentified as a Nabarlek P. concinna) -Wilkin's Rock Wallaby Petrogale wilkinsi Territory Wildlife Park (2019) -Western Pygmy Possum Cercartetus concinnus Cleland Wildlife Park (2020 or 2021) -Rock Ringtail Possum Petropseudes dahli Territory Wildlife Park (2017) -Northern Blossom Bat Macroglossus minimus Territory Wildlife Park (2018) -Bare-rumped Sheath-tail Bat Saccolaimus saccolaimus Territory Wildlife Park (2018) -Leopard Seal Hydrurga leptonyx Taronga Zoo (2014) -Australian Hump-backed Dolphin Sousa sahulensis Sea World Gold Coast (2019) -Brush-tailed Tree Rat Conilurus penicillatus Halls Gap Zoo -Fawn-footed Melomys Melomys cervinipes Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary (2016?) -Bush Rat Rattus fuscipes Taronga Zoo -Long-haired Rat Rattus villosissimus Walkabout Creek Discovery Centre (2017?) -Carpentarian Rock Rat Zyzomys palatilis Territory Wildlife Park Species gained since 2014: -Common Planigale Planigale maculata Territory Wildlife Park -Julia Creek Dunnart Sminthopsis douglasi Julia Creek Information Centre (?) (formerly also at David Fleay's until c.2016) -Brush-tailed Mulgara Dasycercus blythi Alice Springs Desert Park -Mitchell's Hopping Mouse Notomys mitchellii Melbourne Museum (albeit off-display), and later Kyabram Fauna Park and Monarto Zoo -New Holland Mouse Pseudomys novaehollandiae Melbourne Zoo, Moonlit Sanctuary -Smoky Mouse Pseudomys fumeus Healesville Sanctuary -Central Rock Rat Zyzomys pedunculatus Alice Springs Desert Park
Last time I was at Cleland they had a numbats. And Taronga has had Water Rats in the Platypus House, unless they've been moved on. Hix
When was the last time you were at Cleland? They had a pair of females for a while, and then these died out I guess, and a new female was bought in in June 2011, but according to Facebook was no longer living at the park in July 2012. The Platypus house had two exhibits for platypus and one for spinifex hopping mice last Christmas. I was a bit surprised by how few collections held water rats.
Not that I'm aware of. I am hoping they come back. As far as I know, this is the only native mammal found in overseas zoos but not in Australian ones.
Bonny little creatures; I believe it has been a close-run thing as to whether the species can hang on in captivity over here due to genetic bottlenecking and studbook mismanagement in the past.
I was going to say about water rats at Taronga but forgot. I wonder why they don't have them now. Like you I'm surprised how rare they seem to be in zoos! For the pinnipeds I've also got NZ fur seal at Melbourne Zoo (in advance, because at least one of the Napier ones is supposed to be going there). Lumholtz's tree kangaroo also at Dreamworld. Does anyone know if there are still any Bennett's tree kangaroos around? I know Cairns Tropical Zoo for one used to have the species.
Last at Cleland in 2010, so I guess they've gone. And if there were two tanks for platypus at Taronga, then they've moved the water rats out of one of them. Hix
Best guess would be their size, specialised requirements (for a rodent), difficulty in breeding and short lifespan. Personally I think they are an underrated native species.
Werribee Open Range Zoo have fat tailed dunnarts I will confirm that they haven't died on Friday (they only live for about 14 months). If you haven't heard from me by Saturday, then they are still there.
I did see one there earlier in the year, but didn't think to update this list. Thanks for reminding me.
I have updated the list with these new additions, and the sad loss. If anyone knows any other changes, please post them here.
that is great. I had a look on Taronga's Facebook and there are three of them. Photos here: https://www.facebook.com/tarongazoo/posts/936002123129346
I don't know if you would count this place as a zoo but Barna Mia (Barna Mia | Explore Parks WA | Department of Parks and Wildlife) has a few species that seem to be fairly rare in Australian collections: Western-barred Bandicoot (Perameles bougainville) Greater Bilby (Macrotis lagotis) Rufous-hare Wallaby (Lagorchestes hirsutus) (Listed here as Mala) Burrowing Bettong (Bettongia lesueur) Southern Brown Bandicoot (Isoodon obesulus) Brush-tailed Bettong (Bettongia penicillata) This was when I visited in July 2014 but I doubt it has changed since it is a breeding centre for these species. I was also told that they previously held Banded Hare-wallaby (Lagostrophus fasciatus) but they were sent away because they only ever achieved one breeding.
What a brilliant thread. I'd recently been looking for a resource like this, and although I'd seen the 'exotic mammals' counterpart I've only just found this one. Good work zooboy!
Not really a zoo, per se, but there is a bed and breakfast place up in the Atherton Tablelands called "Lumholtz Lodge" that has two agile wallabies, two black footed tree rats and a boisterous 2½-year old (Lumholtz) tree kangaroo called Kimberley. Share a cup of coffee with a tree kangaroo at this North Queensland retreat