| Green ringtail possum[1] | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Mammalia |
| Infraclass: | Marsupialia |
| Order: | Diprotodontia |
| Family: | Pseudocheiridae |
| Genus: | Pseudochirops |
| Species: | P. archeri
|
| Binomial name | |
| Pseudochirops archeri (Collett, 1884)
| |
| |
| Green ringtail possum range | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Phalangista archeri | |
The green ringtail possum (Pseudochirops archeri) is a species of ringtail possum found only in northern Australia. This makes it unique in its genus, all other members of which are found in New Guinea or nearby islands. The green ringtail possum is found in a tiny area of northeastern Queensland, between Paluma and Mount Windsor Tableland.[3]
The green ringtail possum gets its name from its fur, which does indeed have a greenish tinge. In reality the fur is olive grey, but it is grizzled with silver, yellow and black hairs, which makes it appear green. It is nocturnal, solitary, and arboreal. It feeds mostly on leaves[3] and is one of the few species that can eat the leaves of the stinger plant (Dendrocnide moroides) which can cause extreme pain with human casualties needing to be hospitalised.[4] It also engages in a practice called coprophagy, where an animal eats its own faeces .[citation needed]
- ^ Groves, C. P. (2005). Wilson, D. E.; Reeder, D. M. (eds.). Mammal Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 53. ISBN 0-801-88221-4. OCLC 62265494.
- ^ Woinarski, J.; Burbidge, A.A. (2019). "Pseudochirops archeri". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T18502A21962719. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-1.RLTS.T18502A21962719.en. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
- ^ a b Menkhorst, Peter (2001). A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia. Oxford University Press. p. 98.
- ^ Hurley, M. (2000). "Growth dynamics and leaf quality of the stinging trees Dendrocnide moroides and Dendrocnide cordifolia (Family Urticaceae) in Australian tropical rainforest: Implications for herbivores". Australian Journal of Botany. 48 (2): 191. doi:10.1071/BT98006.