Long-nosed Potoroo
Potorous tridactylus
Meet the Long-nosed Potoroo
Habitat & Range
Long-nosed potoroos occur in parts of south-eastern Australia, including Tasmania. They favour habitats with dense ground cover where they can shelter from predators and move safely through the landscape.
They can be found in forests, woodlands, heathlands and areas of thick native vegetation. Healthy soils and intact understorey are particularly important because much of their food is found beneath the ground.
What's on the Menu?
Underground fungi are a very important part of the Long-nosed Potoroo's diet. They also eat roots, tubers, seeds, plant material and small invertebrates.
Potoroos use their long noses and strong sense of smell to locate food beneath the soil, then dig it out using their front feet.
Amazing Adaptations
The Long-nosed Potoroo gets its name from its elongated, tapered snout. Its excellent sense of smell helps it locate fungi and other foods hidden underground.
Strong front feet and claws allow the potoroo to make small diggings as it searches for food, while powerful hind legs allow it to move quickly through dense vegetation.
Its compact body is well suited to moving through thick understorey and low vegetation.
Did You Know?
Potoroos help forests from below the ground up. As they dig for fungi, they turn over soil and can help spread fungal spores through the environment.
Many of these fungi form important relationships with native plants, helping them obtain nutrients and water.
Behaviour
Long-nosed potoroos are mostly active from dusk through the night. During the day they shelter in dense vegetation and other protected areas.
They spend much of their active time foraging, using their noses to investigate the ground before digging for food.
Potoroos can be secretive and difficult to observe in the wild, even in areas where they are present.
Conservation & Threats
Long-nosed potoroos depend on healthy habitat with suitable ground cover and food resources. Habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation can reduce the areas available for shelter and foraging.
Introduced predators, road mortality and changes to native vegetation can also place pressure on populations.
Protecting connected areas of dense native vegetation is particularly important for small ground-dwelling mammals such as potoroos.
Long-nosed Potoroos at Trowunna
Long-nosed potoroos are one of the native species included in Trowunna Wildlife Sanctuary's Managed Environmental Enclosures.
These carefully managed habitats support Trowunna's work in wildlife rehabilitation, conservation and education, while providing suitable environments for small native mammals such as potoroos, bettongs and bandicoots.
By protecting these often overlooked species, we also help protect the important ecological processes they perform, including soil turnover and the movement of fungi through the environment.
How You Can Help
- Protect native vegetation and dense ground cover where possible.
- Keep cats contained and dogs under control around native wildlife.
- Slow down when driving, particularly between dusk and dawn.
- Leave fallen logs, leaf litter and natural ground habitat undisturbed where it is safe to do so.
- Support conservation programs protecting Tasmania's small native mammals and their habitats.
Wildlife Welfare Comes First
Please do not feed, touch or attempt to handle Trowunna's Long-nosed Potoroos.
Potoroos are naturally secretive animals and need areas where they can retreat from view. Please keep noise to a minimum, respect their space and always follow instructions from Trowunna's wildlife keepers.