What Is the Adaptation of a Common Wombat?

Wombats are small marsupials that live in different areas of Australia, Flinders Island and Tasmania. There are two types: the hairy-nosed wombats that live in the arid and semi-arid woodlands and grasslands, and the common wombats that prefer the wetter shrub-lands and forests.

  1. Appearance

    • Wombats have short, powerful legs ending in five flattened claws for digging. They sit on their rumps to dig with the front claws and move loose soil to the side with their back legs.

    Diet

    • Wombats eat mainly perennial grass and bluebush scrub. Food can take as long as eight days to be fermented and digested--this ensures complete absorption of water and nutrients. The fermentation breaks down the cellulose from the plants.

    Burrows

    • Wombats make burrows in the ground and spend their days there conserving energy and water. Burrows also help wombats evade predators.

    Mating

    • While common wombat mating is not influenced by their food source, the reproduction cycles of hairy-nosed wombats have adapted to the growing season of the grasses they eat. They mate when the plants are germinating and do not mate at all during droughts. During mating season, males become aggressive while establishing dominance, and females looking for mates use a coughing call.