Once called the Common Rabbit Bandicoot, the Bilby is now restricted to a few small locations in remote Central and Northern Australia. Rabbit trappers in the immediate vicinity of Adelaide once took more Bilbys from their traps than rabbits. Bilbys obtain water from a diet of insects, tubers, fruits and seeds, found in soil with their acute sense of smell. Two young are reared in a backward opening pouch. They avoid the extreme daytime heat in an extensive warren system about three metres long and up to two metres deep. Distribution of the Bilby in Australia.

 © 2008 The Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden