Lake Mackay hare-wallaby
| Lake Mackay hare-wallaby Temporal range: Recent |
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|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Diprotodontia |
| Family: | Macropodidae |
| Genus: | Lagorchestes |
| Species: | L. asomatus |
| Binomial name | |
|
Lagorchestes asomatus Finlayson, 1943 |
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The Lake Mackay hare-wallaby (Lagorchestes asomatus), also known as the central hare-wallaby or kuluwarri, is an extinct species of macropod formerly found in central Australia. Very little is known about it.
The Lake Mackay hare-wallaby belongs to the Madropodidae family, the largest in the order Diprodontia. Along with possums, gliders, potoroos, and kangaroos, the Lake Mackay hare-wallaby belongs to the suborder Phalangerida. The suborder Vombatiformes consist of koalas and wombats. The Lake Mackay hare-wallaby's subfamily, Macropodinae, comprises 61 species from 10 genera. Madropodidae's other suborder, Sthenurinae, may have included about 20 species during the Pleistocene period according to fossil record.
The Lake Mackay hare-wallaby is known only from a single animal collected by explorer/geologist Michael Terry in 1932 between Mount Farewell and the northern end of Lake Mackay in the Northern Territory. Only the skull was kept, and this is the only physical evidence scientists have today for the Lake Mackay hare-wallaby's existence; however, there are records of anecdotal evidence given by Aboriginal Australians.
According to Aboriginal knowledge, the Lake Mackay hare-wallaby was covered in soft, long, gray fur and had especially long fur covering the tops of its feet. It had a short, thick tail and hopped like a kangaroo. The Lake Mackay hare-wallaby was comparable in size to a boodie or rabbit. They were mostly said to only produce one offspring at a time, but a few people reported two.
The Lake Mackay hare-wallaby created shelter using Triodia, known commonly as spinifex. The allegedly sheltered in shallow depressions below clumps of spinifex, created grass-lined nests, and sometimes dug short burrows similar to those of the Rufous hare-wallaby. They were referred to as "stupid" and "deaf" by the Aborigines, because when hunted they would not leave their shelter, therefore making them easy prey.
The Lake Mackay hare-wallaby was said to have eaten grass leaves and seeds and desert quandong fruit.
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Wikipedia