Range:

Australia and Tasmania

Habitat:

Forests, mountains, and grasslands

What’s a wombat?

Wombats are one of the oddest-looking animals you'll ever see! Native to Australia, the comical animals look like short, stocky bears. But wombats are really marsupials, related to koalas and kangaroos. They are either sandy brown or grayish black to blend in with the landscape and avoid predators. The sturdy wombat is most active in the early evening and at night.

There are three species of wombat: common, or bare-nosed, wombats, which have a bare nose, and two species of hairy-nosed wombats that have, well, hairy noses! The common wombat has coarse fur and short, round ears while the hairy-nosed wombats have soft fur and much larger ears. Although wombats look cute and cuddly, they tend to have a short temper and can become very aggressive if they feel threatened.

Can you dig it?

Well, wombats can! Wide, strong feet with large claws make the wombat a master at “digging it”! From the burrow, they create impressive tunnels underground that lead to sleeping chambers. They dig with great zest and energy, moving up to 3 feet (1 meter) of dirt in a single night. The burrow usually has one entrance but then branches out into several tunnels that can reach up to 650 feet (200 meters) in length. The common wombat remains fairly solitary in its burrow home, but the southern hairy-nosed wombat often shares its home with up to a dozen other wombats.

Early settlers in Australia often mistakenly referred to wombats as badgers because of their size and digging behavior.
An ancestor of modern-day wombats was the giant wombat. It lived during the Ice Age and was the size of a rhinoceros. Early humans in Australia shared the same space with this giant. In fact, it is believed that ancient Aborigines hunted the giant wombat.
It can take a wombat up to 14 days to completely digest one meal.
Wombat incisor teeth never stop growing but are gnawed down from the tough vegetation the animal eats.
Wombats can live for years without drinking any water.

The San Diego Zoo received its first wombat, a common wombat, in 1927. We have had four southern hairy-nosed wombats born here over the years, starting in 1998. The proud parents were Kindyerra, whose name means “grass” in the Australian Aboriginal language, and Kambera, whose name means “father.”

This pair continues to live here and can be seen on Front Street, next to the camels. Keepers say that both of our wombats are very curious and are quite interested when new furniture, plants, or enrichment is placed in their enclosures. When they are not in their cave or burrows, they are generally underfoot checking out everything the keepers are doing. Kindyerra has a designated brush and happily allows us to brush her coat. Kambera, also known as Dick, likes to back up to the rake when keepers are cleaning to have his bottom scratched!

The Zoo is building a brand-new habitat area to be called Australian Outback. It is scheduled to open in spring 2013 and will feature koalas, kookaburras, and, of course, wombats. Our southern hairy-nosed wombat pair may have some new digs to dig in!

In 1906, the Australian government declared wombats pests and encouraged people to kill them. From 1925 to 1965, some 63,000 wombat skins were redeemed for cash. Fortunately, this practice has stopped. Today, although the common wombat and southern hairy-nosed wombat populations are more stable than that of the northern hairy-nosed wombat, all three species face an uncertain future. Land clearing, habitat competition with cattle, poison bait set out for rabbit control, drought, road deaths, predation, and disease are all ongoing threats.

But the northern hairy-nosed wombat is in danger of becoming extinct. Currently, there are just over 100 individuals, all found in Epping Forest National Park, located in eastern Australia. Grazing sheep and cattle, as well as a long drought, have reduced the grasslands the wombat needs to survive. Dingoes killed a good number of northern hairy-nosed wombats in 2000, but in 2002, a fence was built around the Park to help protect this wombat species from predators. It is hoped this will help the wombat make a comeback.

The February 2009, bushfires raged through Australia’s state of Victoria, charring more than 1 million acres. Millions of Australian animals—including wombats—perished. San Diego Zoo Global helped to support wildlife rescue and rehabilitation work after the deadly bushfires.