Mountain pygmy possum

Mountain pygmy-possum

Common name: Mountain pygmy possum
Scientific name: Burramys parvus
Population: Declining
Conservation status: Critically endangered

Photo: Jiri Lochman/Lochman Transparencies

Are Mountain pygmy-possums endangered?

• Mountain pygmy-possums are listed as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List. They were thought to be extinct until they were rediscovered at Mt Hotham in the 1960s.

• They continue to face countless threats including lack of food as Bogong moth numbers crash, climate change as their habitat warms, the development of ski resorts and feral cats and foxes.

How many Mountain pygmy-possums are left? 

• There are an estimated 2000 Mountain pygmy-possums left in the wild.

• Fossil records show that Mountain pygmy-possums have existed for approximately 10,000 years. 

What is special about the Mountain pygmy-possum?

• Mountain pygmy possums are only found in remote, alpine and sub-alpine regions and spend seven months of the year hibernating under the snow.

• So tiny, these possums only weigh about 40 grams – that's about the same as a medium chicken’s egg or 2 AA batteries. They are about 250 mm long — but over half of their body length is made up by their tail. 

• Female Mountain pygmy-possums can live for up to 13 years, making them the longest-living small marsupial known. Males live for up to five years.

What do Mountain pygmy-possums eat?

• The most important food source for Mountain pygmy-possums are Bogong moths. This moth is now threatened putting the Mountain pygmy-possum at even greater risk of extinction. 

• The crash of Bogong moth populations led to conservationists leaving ‘Bogong bikkies’, nutritionally dense supplements for pygmy-possums and other threatened animals.

• The possums also eat Mountain plum pine, berries, fleshy fruits, insects, nectar and seeds. 

Where can I see Mountain pygmy-possums?

• Mountain pygmy-possums live in alpine and sub-alpine habitats across three distinct regions across New South Wales and Victoria: Bogong High Plain, Mt Buller and Mt Kosciusko.

• These tiny marsupials are nocturnal, meaning they can only be spotted out and about at night. They also hibernate during winter, so are only active from Spring to Autumn. With Mountain pygmy-possum numbers dwindling, it’s also incredibly rare to see them in the wild.

Photo: Jiri Lochman/Lochman Transparencies

Our environment laws must protect Mountain pygmy-possums

We need laws that protect nature, including strong outcome-focused environmental standards and an independent regulator to oversee decision-making.

Speak up for the Mountain pygmy-possum

Any action helps in the fight to protect these precious Australian marsupials. Here are a few ways you can help.

1. Adopt a Mountain pygmy-possum. For as little as $9 per week, you can symbolically adopt a Mountain pygmy-possum and be a beacon of hope for these tiny, alpine creatures.
2. Join half a million people calling for nature laws that actually protect nature.
3. Sign the petition to End Coal and Gas in Australia to ramp up urgent climate action.

Read more

Flight of the Bogong moth — and the possum who waits 

Header: Jiri Lochman/Lochman Transparencies