Western Ringtail Possum
EPBC Status: Critically Endangered
SPRAT Species Profile: Pseudocheirus occidentalis — Western Ringtail Possum
Found in: Western Australia
Threatened Species Strategy Scorecards: Western Ringtail Possum Year 3 scorecard 2018 (PDF - 434.33 KB)
Western Ringtail Possum Year 3 scorecard 2018 (DOCX - 290.69 KB)
Year 3 Scorecard Summary (2018)
The Western Ringtail Possum is an arboreal, herbivorous marsupial endemic to the south-west of WA. It depends on high quality forage from myrtaceous tree species. Western Ringtail Possums disappeared from at least 80% of their pre-European range by 1980, and their distribution and population size has continued to decline due to habitat loss and fragmentation, changed fire regimes, and predation by cats, foxes and dogs in some areas. Declines are likely to continue as climatic conditions become drier and warmer, as this affects the nutritional quality of the possums’ preferred foliage, further changes fire regimes, causes overheating in the Possums, and changes their behaviour in ways that increase predation risk.
Actions to conserve Western Ringtail Possums include control of introduced predators (foxes and cats), guidelines to reduce impacts from timber harvesting and prescribed, controlled burning in Western Ringtail Possum habitat. Numerous organisations are undertaking education and awareness-raising events to minimise the impact of human activities on Western Ringtail Possums where they co-exist in urban and peri-urban areas.
Further information
- Threatened species strategy
- 20 birds by 2020
- 20 mammals by 2020
- 30 plants by 2020
- Three year review of progress on priority bird and mammal species
Please note that this scorecard is due for review in Year 5 of the Threatened Species Strategy (2020). If you would like to contribute information on this species please provide your contact details to ThreatenedSpeciesCommissioner@awe.gov.au
Photo credit: © Alan Danks