Tasmanian Devil

Sarcophilus harrisii

CONSERVATION STATUS

Endangered

Lifespan: 

Wild: 4-5 years. Captivity: 5-7 years


HOW DID THEY GET THEIR NAME? 

Tasmanian devils are a nocturnal species, venturing out of their dens at night to search for food and at the tight time of year to breed. Gathering around a carcass, devils feed in a communal squabble, shrieking, screaming, snarling, coughing and growling to intimidate and warn of others to try and assert access and dominance. Early European settlers initially heard the Tasmanian devils eerie, echoing vocalisations through the bush and without seeing the animal presumed there must have been demons and monsters.
At night, when utilising their excellent senses of smell and hearing, the blood vessels in their ears cause the ears to go from a pale pink to a brighter red, along with their large bright teeth and bone crunching, this further added to their fearsome reputation. In reality, these small but feisty animals are often more bluff than tough.
  • TasmanianDevil

  • Dark green indicates where the Tasmanian Devil can be found

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THREATS AND CONSERVATION

Tasmanian devils face extinction in the wild because of a contagious cancer that appeared in 1996 called Devil Facial Tumour Disease. This is characterised by cancers around the mouth and head that prevent the animal from feeding, drinking causing starvation and dehydration. The tumours also damage the respiratory and other essential bodily systems and usually results in death. Fighting over food sources, den sites or mating opportunities allows the disease to spread through physical contact. Devil Facial Tumour Disease is one of only a handful of known transmissible cancers, however in 2014, a second, similar but unique, transmissible cancer was discovered in Tasmanian Devils. Scientists are still unsure as to why devils appear so susceptible to these cancers, but low genetic diversity is thought to be a likely cause.  The number of devils has declined by over 80% since the mid-1990’s, with some regions of Tasmania seeing over 95% local population declines. The species is listed as Endangered.

There is no current cure for Devil Facil Tumour Disease, although there is now believed to be some level of immunity in the wild population slowly evolving, with some wild animals recovering from the disease over time and animals now living with the disease for longer periods of time, allowing successful breeding and young rearing to occur. Research is also ongoing into vaccination efforts, both for wild animals and for released captive bred individuals.

Several captive bred releases have occurred throughout Tasmania to boost numbers and genetic diversity within populations. A safe haven away from the disease has also been established on Maria Island, where Tasmanian Devils were previously not found.

Other threats include ever increasing roadkill, habitat loss and use of poisons and rodenticides.

In response to the population decline, a managed population of around 400-500 animals has been established in wildlife parks and zoos across Australia as an insurance population. Moonlit Sanctuary houses both breeding animals and post reproductive animals on behalf of the program.

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BREEDING

Devils usually breed in March-May, with the female giving birth after a 21 day pregnancy to 20-40 joeys that are the size of a grain of rice. They are blind, deaf and initially only have two functioning limbs, with the others stil partially fused. There are only four teats in the pouch, so only the first four joeys that make it to the pouch get a chance for survival. From here they are reared initially in their mothers pouch, until they become too heavy and back ride before being denned in a burrow, under a log or tussock, in caves or even under houses. At 9-10 months devils leave independent, not yet fully grown, maturing between 12-18 months.

A KEYSTONE SPECIES

Tasmanian Devils play an important role in clearing carrion and removing sick and injured animals from the ecosystem, preventing the spread of disease and helping to ensure herbivorous animal population control. They may also play a role in competing with introduced species such as cats through competition and some predation, although evidence suggests cats may also do this to Tasmanian devils, so keeping their numbers high to ensure a favoured balance to devils is important.

DIET

Tasmanian devils are carnivores and mainly scavenge on carrion (dead animals), eating the bones, fur and all. In events we refer to as ‘gorge feeding’ they can eat up to 40% of their body weight in single sitting… sometimes in as shorter time as 30 minutes! To help break up bone, Tasmanian devils have the strongest bite to weight ratio of any mammal, with an average Tasmanian devil male of 10kg producing a bite equivalent to that of a 40kg dog.
In the wild they switch up their preferred dietary items seasonally, favouring more fat filled possum meat in the winter, over leaner wallaby in the summer. As an opportunistic scavenger and occasional hunter, they also consume birds, frogs, insects, eggs, washed up fish and marine mammals and occasionally even venomous snakes. A truly unfussy eater.
Tasmanian devils have also been noted to consume dead livestock, often mistakenly blamed for killing sheep, which in past has led to their persecution. In reality, Tasmanian devils are not known to hunt in packs and are limited in their capabilities of taking down large prey.
On rare occasions devils have been known to be very curious about novel items, exploring with their teeth, with metal coins and even small doll heads consumed and passed through their tough digestive tracts.
All Mammals

STRANDED IN TASMANIA

Devils were once found on the mainland of Australia approximately 3000-3500 years ago, but are now restricted to Tasmania where they are found in varied habitats from the coast to the mountains. Their  mainland extinction was likely caused by a combination of the arrival of the dingo to mainland Australia as a potential competitor and predator. Dingoes never crossed the Bass strait and thus the Tasmanian devil remains the largest terrestrial predator on the island.
Closely related to the now extinct Thylacine or Tasmanian Tiger, they belong to the family Dasyuridae, marsupial carnivores. They are now the world’s largest living carnivorous marsupial.
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