(Lasiorhinus krefftii).

The Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat, also known as the Queensland Wombat, Moonie River Wombat and Yaminon, is similar in appearance to its cousin, the Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat. Its colouring is predominantly grey-brown or grey mottled with fawn, brown or black. It can be distinguished from the common wombat (Vombatus ursinus) by its silky hair and distinctly longer ears and from the Southern Hairy-nosed Wombat (Lasiorhinus latifrons) by a different nose structure. Males and females grow to approximately the same size - up to 1 metre in head and body length with a tail extending a further 50 mm. Their average full grown weight is around 25 kilograms with some specimens reaching over 35kg.

The favoured habitat of the Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat is flat, sandy, semi-arid grassland and eucalypt / acacia woodland with patches of closed scrub and a ground cover of native grasses. At the time of European settlement, its range extended throughout much of Eastern Australia, west of the ranges. It is now restricted to two small areas - the Epping Forest National Park in southern Queensland and the Jerilderie area in southern N.S.W where its status is uncertain.

The animal digs its burrows with either a single entrance or in groups, usually among trees. They are mainly nocturnal creatures, spending the day in a burrow and emerging at night to feed on grasses and other herbage.

The species was first identified from a fossil skull found in the Wellington Caves, NSW in 1869. Fossil remains have since been found in southwestern NSW, in Victoria and Queensland. Specimens from a large isolated colony near Jerilderie, NSW were taken in 1884. There has been no record of this population since 1909. Specimens were also found between 1891 and 1900 in southern Queensland at sites near St. George close to the Moonie and Balonne Rivers. Several reports suggest that the hairy-nosed wombat existed near Injune and Tambo in Queensland. A small colony was found at Epping Forest station, Qld in 1937. The area is now incoroprated into the Epping Forest National Park and is fenced to exclude cattle grazing.

The animal has a status of rare, limited and endangered. The rapid decline in population is attributed to competition with introduced grazing animals such as cattle, sheep and rabbits.

Source:
'Complete Book of Australian Mammals' - Australian Museum, 1983.

• 1998 Silver Endangered Species $10 and Piedfort.