Dietary analysis of an uncharacteristic population of the Mountain Pygmy-possum (Burramys parvus) in the Kosciuszko National Park, New South Wales, Australia.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The Mountain Pygmy-possum (Burramys parvus) is a critically endangered marsupial, endemic to alpine regions of southern Australia. We investigated the diet of a recently discovered population of the possum in northern Kosciuszko National Park, NSW, Australia. This new population occurs at elevations well below the once-presumed lower elevation limit of 1,600 m.

Goals and methods

Faecal material was analysed to determine if dietary composition differed between individuals in the newly discovered northern population and those in the higher elevation southern population, and to examine how diet was influenced by rainfall in the southern population and seasonal changes in resource availability in the northern population.

Results and discussion

The diet o

SUBMITTER: Hawke T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6348096 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature