Abstract
Effective conservation of Australasian marsupials requires detailed knowledge of their food habits and activity patterns. Ancestral marsupials were probably nocturnal insectivores. Food habits of extant fauna are studied by techniques such as direct observations, analysis of prey remains in stomach contents or feces, field experiments, eDNA, stable isotope analysis, and chemical tracers. Species in the order Dasyuromorphia are mainly carnivorous, including insectivores, faunivores, and a specialist termite feeder, the Numbat Myrmecobius fasciatus. Those in the order Peramelemorphia are omnivorous, although dentition and gut anatomy suggest that some species might specialize. Diprotodontians comprise mainly herbivores such as kangaroos and possums, but also some omnivores and a family of extinct carnivores, the Thylacoleonidae. The diprotodont family Tarsipedidae includes only the Honey Possum Tarsipes rostratus which, uniquely, specializes on nectar and pollen; larger possums include substantial portions of foliage, petioles, and stems in their diets. Foraging usually occurs at night, but some marsupials meet their energetic and nutritional requirements via activity throughout the 24-h cycle, others are crepuscular, and one species – the Numbat – is diurnal. The activity patterns of some species appear to be invariant. In other species activity is modified by extrinsic factors including season, weather, environmental conditions, and biotic interactions such as predation and by intrinsic factors such as sex, age, and hunger. Although nocturnality is the basal condition, activity patterns in Australasian marsupials often represent a balance between the need to seek food and other resources and the risks that are inherent in leaving safe areas to acquire them.