Pygmy Possums Have Been Rediscovered And They Are The Cutest Things Ever
What a strange year 2020 has been, there’s definitely been a lot of crappy things happen right? However, there have been some super cool things as well and the rediscovery of Pygmy Possums is one of them.
Pygmy Possums haven’t been seen at all since the deadly Australian bushfires. It was even feared that they had been completely wiped out!
Thankfully the rare creatures have been rediscovered nearly a year later! This is fantastic news!
The status of the little pygmy possum (cercartetus lepidus) was unknown pre 2020 bushfires on #kangarooisland. With most of its habitat severely burnt we are happy to have detected the species for the first time since the fires in the largest unburnt patch #BushfireRecoveryAU pic.twitter.com/tSRjPunDZ8
— Pat Hodgens (@terrainecology) December 4, 2020
They are so tiny! Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife is an Aussie conservation group. They have been working hard helping with the recovery after the bushfires and they are the ones that found the tiny Pygmy Possums.
They were already rare before the fires, so finding them again after the fires is fantastic! The little critters weigh only 7 grams! That’s equivalent to 0.246918 ounces!
Pygmy Possums are super rare
There have only been 113 records of the Pygmy Possums in the past. Since they are so small, it makes them more difficult to find and study.
So, certainly not very common and, obviously, the summer bushfires burnt through much of that habitat that species had, but we were certainly hopeful that we would find them.
Fauna ecologist Pat Hodgens told ABC
The Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife is doing everything they can to help learn about and preserve the rare creatures in this critical time.
It’s very important now because it is kind of like the last refuge for a lot of these species that really rely on very old long, unburned vegetation.
Fauna ecologist Pat Hodgens told ABC
They’ve also discovered more than 20 different wildlife species while conducting their surveys of the land. These discoveries include a tammar wallaby and a southern brown bandicoot!
I don’t think there is a creature that exists that is cuter than the Pygmy Possum! I wish our American Possums were this adorable!
? 20 fauna sites surveyed ? Worked with 20 landholders across 10 properties in the North West Conservation Alliance…
Posted by Kangaroo Island Land for Wildlife on Friday, December 4, 2020
