Environment Matters Autumn/Winter 2024

Who’s been doing a ‘hole’ lot of digging? Ipswich community Facebook pages occasionally light up with photos of mysterious holes appearing in lawns and garden beds.

THE SCENE

Bandicoot forage pit. Photo by: Alan Wynn, Land for Wildlife South East Queensland

Often the culprit is the humble bandicoot – and it’s a sign of a healthy environment! Bandicoots are tenacious when foraging for bugs, grubs and roots. These diggings are vital for soil aeration, as well as soil turnover. These holes also allow water and nutrients to better enter the soil, and can become tiny composting pits as they collect leaf litter.

A single bandicoot can be responsible for turning over between 1.6 and 4 tonnes of soil a year. There are two types of bandicoot in South-East Queensland, the long- nosed bandicoot with its softer sleek fur and large ears, and the chunkier northern brown bandicoot, with its coarser brindle coat and smaller ears. They are among a few ground-dwelling native animals that can survive around suburbia – they’re quite good at using a wide range of food sources and general habitat.

THE CULPRIT

These are no ordinary ‘rats’! Ipswich is home to native animals that are often confused with common introduced rats – but are a whole lot better.

Bush rat (Rattus fuscipes) :

Swamp rat (Rattus lutreolus) :

Water rat / Rakali (Hydromys chryogaster) : They are specialised for living in water, with partially webbed hind feet and water repellent fur. They are often confused for platypus when swimming.

Yellow-footed Antechinus (Antechinus flavipes): These shrew-like creatures are famous for the males being so frenzied in mating that they suffer stress- related death!

They live in dense habitat and are shy and solitary creatures. They are omnivores, eating seeds, insects, fruit, plants and nectar.

They make tunnels through native vegetation and eat mostly the stems of grasses and sedges. They avoid areas where humans live.

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