Eastern quoll
Scientific name - Dasyurus viverrinus
Once common in Tasmania, the eastern quoll (or native cat) is either ginger-brown or black with white spots on the body but not the tail. Eastern quolls once occurred on mainland Australia, with the last sighting occurring in the Sydney suburb of Vaucluse in the early 1960s. They are now considered extinct on the mainland following the introduction of dingos, foxes and cats. The eastern quoll is largely solitary and nocturnal. It hunts and scavenges, feeding largely on insects, with agricultural pests like the cockchafer beetle and corbie grub particular favourites.
Where can I see it?
Spotted-tail quoll
Scienitific name - Dasyurus maculatus
Spotted-tailed quolls (or tiger cat as it was once known) vary from reddish brown to dark chocolate brown with white spots on the body and tail. It is the second largest of the world's surviving carnivorous marsupials. The spotted-tailed quoll is now threatened throughout its mainland range. The Spotted-tailed Quoll is widely but sparsely distributed across Tasmania, but has been extinct on King and Flinders islands since the early 1900s. The spotted-tailed quoll is a capable hunter that, like the eastern quoll, kills its prey by biting on or behind the head.
Where can I see it?
Most common in cool temperate rainforest, wet sclerophyll forest and coastal scrub along the north and west coasts of the state.