Antechinus minimus — Details

Swamp Antechinus learn more about names for this taxon

Overview

Distribution

Range Description

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The Swamp Antechinus is endemic to Australia. The subspecies A. m. maritimus (Finlayson 1958) is found as fragmented populations in near-coastal areas of south-eastern South Australia and Victoria west of and including Sunday Island and Wilsons Promontory. Isolated populations in southern Gippsland Plain have been most affected by habitat modification and/or alienation. In South Australia, recorded since 1970 from coastal lakes and swamps south of Robe. In Victoria, recorded since 1970 from three main areas, the south-western Wannon region, the Otways, and the southern Gippsland Plain (Menkhorst 1995; Bachmann and van Weenen 2001).

A. m. minimus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1803) is present on Tasmania and the Bass Strait Islands (Wilson and Bachmann 2008).
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Ecology

Habitat

Habitat and Ecology

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Habitat and Ecology
This species occurs in damp habitats with dense understorey vegetation. It has been found in forest, woodland, heathland, tussock grassland, and sedgeland. It prefers lower elevation areas, with a southerly aspect and moderate slope (Wilson and Bachmann 2008).

Systems
  • Terrestrial
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Life History and Behavior

Life Expectancy

Lifespan, longevity, and ageing

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Observations: In this species, both males and females have been reported to feature Big Bang reproduction. Most, if not all, males die after mating season, in a process similar to what happens in the brown antechinus (*Antechinus stuartii*). Females die after weaning their litter at about 1.5 years of age (Diamond 1982). In some cases, they can to live about 2 years (Fisher et al. 2001). Because the longevity of these animals has not been studied in detail in captivity, though, it is possible that maximum longevity is longer.
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Conservation

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List Assessment

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Red List Category
LC
Least Concern

Red List Criteria

Version
3.1

Year Assessed
2008

Assessor/s
van Weenen, J. & Menkhorst, P.

Reviewer/s
Lamoreux, J. & Hilton-Taylor, C. (Global Mammal Assessment Team)

Justification
Listed as Least Concern because, although the species is probably declining on the mainland and with limited suitable available habitat in some parts of its range, it seems to be relatively stable in Tasmania and any decline is not steep enough to warrant listing in a threatened category.

History
  • 1996
    Lower Risk/least concern
  • 1996
    Lower Risk/least concern
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Population

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Population
The Swamp Antechinus is rare in South Australia and Victoria, and patchily distributed given the habitat, but more common in Tasmania (Wilson and Bachmann 2008). The largest population densities have been recorded on Great Glennie Island off Wilsons Promontory (Victoria) with an estimated 80 individuals per hectare (Wainer 1976). Wilson et al. (1986) recorded a maximum density of 14 per hectare near Anglesea in the Otways.

Population Trend
Decreasing
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Threats

Threats

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Major Threats
The subspecies A. m. maritimus is likely to be further threatened from continuing drainage and grazing of swamp habitats (and clearance of swamp vegetation), habitat/population fragmentation into small remnant habitat 'islands', and wildfire (Maxwell et al. 1996). Currently A. m. maritimus is impacted by introduced predators (Bachmann and van Weenen 2001). The habitat of this subspecies also could be greatly reduced due to future climate change (Brereton et al. 1995; Burgman and Lindenmeyer 1998). There appear to be no major threats to A. m. minimus.
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Management

Conservation Actions

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Conservation Actions
The Swamp Antechinus is present in a few protected areas; most of the mainland population is found in protected areas (and, indeed, there have been a few efforts to protect and maintain suitable habitat in grazed areas in South Australia). Much of the species' range in the western half of Tasmania is in a World Heritage Site. There is a need for a systematic survey of the current range of A. m. minimus to obtain accurate distribution baseline and determine current threats, as has recently been done for A. m. maritimus in South Australia (Bachmann and van Weenen 2001), as the subspecies is probably undergoing declines and the amount of suitable habitat available is likely to be small.
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Wikipedia

Swamp Antechinus

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The Swamp Antechinus (Antechinus minimus), also known as the Little Tasmanian Marsupial Mouse, is a species of shrew-like marsupial of the Dasyuridae family and as such is related to dunnarts, quolls and the Tasmanian Devil.

Contents

Taxonomy

The Swamp Antechinus was first described in 1803 (the first of all the antechinuses) by Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, who placed it in the genus Dasyurus (quolls), hence its species name minimus, which means "smallest".[3]

There are two recognised subspecies of the Swamp Antechinus:[3]

Habitat and distribution

The area inhabited by the subspecies A. m. maritimus is in the south of the central highlands, wimmera and Alpine areas of Victoria and the extreme south of South Australia around Mount Gambier. For the nominate subspecies A. m. minimus, the range is Tasmania, including Sunday Island King Island and Flinders Island.

The habitat for all subspecies is closed heath, wet dense heath, open forest, open heath, swampy draiages and tussock grassland with bracken and sedge growth.

Breeding and social habits

The species is nocturnal and partly diurnal or active at night and daytime, whether it is crepuscular is not known. The species breeds during May-July and gives birth in July-August after 28-32 days gestation to 6-8 joeys. In the inland areas, mating occurs one month earlier, but the reason is not known. Few females survive a second year and all males don't live long past the mating period (Wilson etal. 1986.).[4]

Diet

The Swamp Antechinus is an insectivorous forager in soil habitats similar to the Dusky Antechinus.[5]

References

  1. ^ Groves, C. (2005). Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. eds. Mammal Species of the World (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. pp. 29–30. OCLC 62265494. ISBN 0-801-88221-4. http://www.bucknell.edu/msw3. 
  2. ^ van Weenen, J. & Menkhorst, P. (2008). Antechinus minimus. In: IUCN 2008. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Downloaded on 09 October 2008.
  3. ^ a b Wainer, J.W.; Wilson, B.A. (1995). "Yellow-footed Antechinus". In Strahan, Ronald. The Mammals of Australia. Reed Books. pp. 86–88. ISBN 0-7301-0484-2 
  4. ^ Menkhorst, Peter (2001). A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia. Oxford University Press. p. 56. ISBN [[Special:BookSources/0-19-440870-X|0-19-440870-X]]. 
  5. ^ Menkhorst, Peter (1996). Mammals of Victoria. Oxford University Press. pp. 44–45. ISBN 0-19-553733-5. 
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