Help Wombat

Wombats are native Australian or Tasmanian mammals. Like many other antipodean animals, they have strange* reproductive habits (less so than the platypus which lays green eggs and is a monotreme). They also have constantly growing incisors allowing (nay, encouraging) them to chew on bark, wood, softer rocks, etc. (Wombats are friendly, loyal, nocturnal, and not overly intelligent. Sir Everard Home reports, “in captivity it is as a rule amiable, the amiability being possibly associated with stupidity.” He probably woke it from a nap.)

* strange to us—they wouldn't have it any other way.

The family Vombatidae is divided into two groups: the naked nosed and the hairy nosed wombats. The naked nosed group constitutes the genus Vombatuis (or Phascolomis) and includes the Tasmanian wombat (V. Ursinus) from Tasmania and Flinders Island and the common Wombat (V. hirsutus) from south east Australia. These have coarse, harsh, blackish brown fur, a naked area on the muzzle, and short ears.

The hairy nosed group contains Lasiorhinus latifrons from south Australia and wombatula gillespiei from southern Queensland. These species have silky grizzled gray fur, a hairy muzzle, and larger ears. The consequences of all this to wombat society is further complicated by the question of who has more ribs.