Mismatched Travel Diaries - Tasmania - Part 2 - The Tassie Devil.
The Tasmanian Devil, or Tassie Devil as us Aussies call it, is a fierce little bugger.
The summer sun is a little too hot for this devil
Like all Australian marsupials, it just looks like it wants to be cuddled. Far from it. Their teeth are as sharp as their eye.
I recommend zooming in on this little guys shark-like teeth
I feel like the Tassie Devil is an animal that is a bit folklore-ish, and that people from the USA or other places exposed to Looney Tunes cartoons have written off as not being real... or as a crazy tornado madman. Its somewhere in between I guess. In the wild, they are hard to find... especially as they are only native to Tasmania.
These guys were photographed at Trowunna Wild Life Park, Mole Creek, Tasmania. We were very grateful for this place as the only other time we saw one was in our headlights late one night, a little further south... Luckily, I swerved and avoided hitting it... I probably wouldn't have forgiven myself for hitting a Tassie Devil.
Unfortunately, they are in danger. A facial Tumour disease has been threatening their species for a number of years. Multiple responses ranging from segregation, monitoring, culling and even the search for genetically different groups have been implemented to varying success. It seems to be a threat that can only be mitigated for now, but thanks to the work of places like Trowunna Wildlife Park, we get to learn about these little guys and how scientists and conservationists are working together to save the Tasmanian Devil.
However, safe inside the confines of the park, there is little to do other than rest, eat, and enjoy life.
DanedeBeau
If you want to find out more about Tasmania visit my previous post below, and for future posts, subscribe to my blog.