The Proserpine rock-wallaby (''Petrogale persephone'') is a species of

rock-wallaby The rock-wallabies are the wallabies of the genus ''Petrogale''. Taxonomy The genus was established in 1837 by John Edward Gray in a revision of material at the British Museum of Natural History. Gray nominated his earlier description of ''Kan ...

restricted to a small area in

Conway National Park Conway is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 911 km northwest of Brisbane. The park's main feature is the Conway Peninsula which is covered by the largest area of lowland tropical rainforest in Queensland outside Tropical North Queen ...

Dryander National Park Dryander is a national park in Queensland (Australia), 938 km northwest of Brisbane, and north of Proserpine. The most prominent mountain in the park is Mount Drylander and rises to 765 meters above sea level. Wildlife The endangered Pr ...

Gloucester Island National Park Gloucester Island is a national park in Queensland, Australia, 950 km northwest of Brisbane. It is visible from the town of Bowen. The island was seen and erroneously named "Cape Gloucester" by British explorer James Cook in 1770. The na ...

, and around the town of Airlie Beach, all in

Whitsunday Shire The Shire of Whitsunday was a local government area located in the North Queensland region of Queensland, Australia. The shire, administered from the town of Proserpine, covered an area of , and existed as a local government entity from 19 ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia. It is a threatened species, being classified by the

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...

. The Proserpine rock-wallaby is mostly grey in colour and is a timid grass-eater that rarely ventures far from rock shelter. It is distinguished from the many other rock wallabies found in northeastern Queensland by its larger size and longer tail, tipped with white. It was unknown to science until 1977, when a single individual was captured after farmers at Proserpine had spoken of a strange form of rock wallaby in the area. The Proserpine rock-wallaby is found only in a relatively intensively-settled area, but it is in competition with other more successful rock-wallaby species, which competition is probably responsible for its threatened status.

References

External links

Australian Department of Environment and Heritage Species Profiles
(includes photos) Macropods Mammals of Queensland Endangered fauna of Australia Marsupials of Australia Nature Conservation Act endangered biota Mammals described in 1982 {{Diprotodont-stub