Vombatidae

The vombats (Vombatidae) are a family of diprotodont marsupials, commonly known as wombats. They are found only in Australia, including Tasmania, and have the appearance of a bear, small and with very short legs. There are currently three living species of wombats, all of which measure around one meter and weigh between 25 and 55 kg. Their hair color varies from beige to brown and from black to gray. It is considered that the closest living relative of these wombat species is the koala, which stands out for having adapted to arboreal life; by comparison, wombats are much less specialized animals in terms of diet and lifestyle.

Features

Wómbat adult

Wómbat

Wombats are herbivorous, feeding on grasses, sedges, and roots. They inhabit extensive burrows that they dig with their front teeth (similar to those of a rodent) and powerful claws. Although they are primarily crepuscular and nocturnal animals, wombats also venture out to forage on cool or cloudy days. They are not easily seen, but they do leave a visible trail of their passage, such as holes under the fences where they pass and distinctive cubic-shaped droppings.

They have an extraordinarily slow metabolism: they take around fourteen days to complete digestion, and they don't usually move very quickly. Even so, they are swift and agile animals. If need be, they can easily outrun a running human and call upon immense reserves of strength. The wombat's main defense against an underground predator is to smash it against the tunnel ceiling until the invader stops breathing.

The gestation period for a female wombat usually lasts about twenty to twenty-one days. They have well-developed marsupial pouches, where the young live six or seven months after gestation in the womb. They are weaned at fifteen months of age and reach reproductive age at eighteen months.

Genus and species

• Vombatus
  • Vombatus ursinus
• Lasiorhinus
  • Lasiorhinus latifrons
  • Lasiorhinus krefftii
• †Rhizophascolonus
• †Nimbavombatus
• †Phascolonus
• †Warendja
• †Ramasayia
• †Sedophascolomys