World Numbat Day is a day to appreciate this amazing yet threatened mammal and encourage the action to conserve the species.
A numbat is a small termite-eating marsupial that lives in Australia. It has a black and white striped back along with a bushy tail. A few other names for the numbat include the banded anteater, noombat, and walpurti. Its long, sticky tongue helps it capture underground termites. While numbats are considered marsupials, they don’t really have a pouch to carry their young. Instead, they have skinfolds that cover their babies while they drink milk from their mother.
The Numbat is Western Australia’s mammal emblem. Numbats have a very specialised diet almost exclusively of termites. They are diurnal, which means they feed during the day. During the day the sun heats up the upper layers soil, increases the temperature. The termites move in to a network of shallow tunnels and chambers just below the ground surface, making it easier to get a meal.
Numbats are under threat from habitat loss and introduced predators including foxes and feral cats. Their population is estimated at fewer than 1000 individuals and help is needed to protect the future of this unique marsupial.
We have two very old books that I still use with students:
• Numbat, Run by Jill Morris
This book includes a story, a poem, an interview with a scientist, and an indigenous numbat story.
Other books that are still available:
• The Two-Hearted Numbat by Ambelin and Ezekiel Kwaymullina
• Rufus the Numbat by David Miller
How strange that there aren’t lots of books about this cute critter.
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