The Tasmanian subspecies P. g. gunnii uses areas where grassland and remnant forest occur together. It probes the ground with its long nose for insects and worms.
The Tasmanian subspecies has distinctive pale bars across its hindquarters. It uses its long nose to make holes in turf and extract insects and worms.
In Tasmania, researchers analyzed genomic data from 85 eastern barred bandicoots sampled between 2008 and 2011. They found two isolated population groups and finer-scale genetic differences across the island. The patterns followed geographic barriers and distance, with little evidence of recent or historical migration.
Genetic diversity varied by as much as twofold among individuals within a group. On the Tasman Peninsula, low-diversity individuals were more common than elsewhere, although high-diversity individuals were also present there. The authors say combining geographic patterns with individual measures may help identify populations needing support and potential source animals for conservation translocations.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
Low-diversity individuals were more common on the Tasman Peninsula than elsewhere in the sample. The authors suggest that combining geographic patterns with individual measures may help identify populations needing support and potential source animals for conservation translocations.