Big Bandicoot

Darryl Cordell, Vanessa Ellis, Trina Gaskell and Cliff Dolliver

Fifty years ago, many residents of South-East Melbourne would have often seen the long, pointy nose, humped back and stumpy tail of the Southern Brown Bandicoot, snuffling around searching for bugs and fungi to eat. As Greater Melbourne has grown, our now nationally endangered bandicoots are getting harder to find.

These mighty marsupials are champions of our environment – as they snuffle in the soil in search of food, they create small holes which have a distinctive tapered shape, a bit like an ice cream cone. These dynamo diggers increase nutrient turnover, improve water penetration, and aerate the soil with staggering success - just one Southern Brown Bandicoot can turn over 3.9 tonnes of soil in a year! Not only that, they also spread beneficial fungi in their scats (poo) which our plants need to survive.

Due to removal of habitat, introduced predators like foxes and cats, and big, busy roads isolating populations, our bandicoots are in trouble. If we don’t take some serious action quickly, there’s a real chance we might lose them forever.

We are working with local communities to create bandicoot-friendly suburbs to help ensure that these tiny residents persist in South-East Melbourne. With a few small actions, we can all improve their chances of survival – click here to learn more!