One-Minute Facts: Quokkas

How can anything this cute be so ruthless?

Craig L Whiteside, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

The first time I saw a picture of a Quokka, I thought it was a cartoon. These smiley-faced little Australian marsupials look too cute to be real.

Their smiley little faces make them quite the tourist attraction. But, you shouldn’t go in for the hug selfie. Quokkas have sharp little teeth and claws and aren’t afraid to use them.

Like most predated creatures, Quokkas have defence mechanisms. Females will throw their babies under the bus if they are attacked by a predator.

Young Quokka babies live in their Mum’s pouches. If the Mum is threatened, she’ll often heave her baby out of the pouch and run away. The baby, naturally enough, gets squally and attracts the predator’s attention.

Much as this breaks a human parent’s heart, it makes sense. If the Mum escapes, she can always have another baby. If both of them get caught, they’ll both die.

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Originally published on Medium.com (02/25)