Brush-tailed bettong
Amazing fact
Brush-tailed bettongs digest fungi with help from bacteria in their stomachs.
Smithsonian National Zoo
No sign-up needed. You can save notes on this device.
An illustration based on the real animal.
A little discovery to share.
Brush-tailed bettongs digest fungi with help from bacteria in their stomachs.
THE REAL WORLD
The real Brush-tailed bettong
- Scientific name
- Bettongia penicillata
- Japanese name
- フサオネズミカンガルー
- Group
- Land mammals
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Diprotodontia
- Family
- Potoroidae
- Genus
- Bettongia
It lives in Australia and belongs to the rat-kangaroo group. Unlike kangaroos, it is not very good at jumping.
It curls its tail around grass, twigs and bark to carry them, and builds its nest in places such as grassy clumps.
It is active at night. It mainly eats fungi that grow underground, and also eats bulbs, seeds and insects.
How the Brush-tailed bettong lives
During the day, it rests in a well-hidden nest made of grass and bark. It finds underground fungi by smell and digs them up with its front claws. It usually lives alone. Newborns crawl into their mother's pouch and grow there while drinking milk.
Smithsonian National ZooBasic data
- Size
- Head and body length: 31–38 cm
- Weight
- 1–1.6 kg
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)
- Diet
- Plant roots, seeds, legumes, fungi, fruit and other foods
- Range
- Australia
Where the Brush-tailed bettong has been recorded
Records: GBIF.org (CC0 and CC BY 4.0 records, retrieved 2026-11-07). Map: Natural EarthSee the records on GBIF
Watch wild animals from a distance. Do not touch or feed them, and take care of the places where they live.
Names around the world
- 日本語
- フサオネズミカンガルー
- 简体中文
- 毛尾鼠袋鼠
- 繁體中文
- 毛尾鼠袋鼠
- 한국어
- 워일리
- Español
- Canguro-rata Colipeludo
- Français
- Bettongie à queue touffue
- Deutsch
- Bürstenrattenkänguru
- Italiano
- Woylie
- Русский
- Кистехвостый кенгуру
Names come from Wikidata and iNaturalist records. Where a language has no recorded name, we use the scientific name.
Sources and how we check
- 上野動物園 — フサオネズミカンガルーChecked: 2026-11-03
- University of Michigan Animal Diversity Web — Bettongia penicillataChecked: 2026-11-03
- Smithsonian National Zoo — Brush-tailed bettongChecked: 2026-11-06
We check each fact against its source. The illustrations simplify how the real animal looks.
The classification (class, order, family, genus) follows Wikidata records, checked against GBIF. Classifications can change as research goes on.
The basic data are the values given in each source. They vary with how the animal is measured, whether it is male or female, and whether it lives in the wild or in captivity.
This page was translated from the original Japanese with the help of AI.
Report a mistakeWhen you meet the Brush-tailed bettong, look for this
- Look for the crest of black fur on its tail.
- Take a look at its large eyes and round ears, too.
Animals do different things from day to day, so you may not always see this.
Smithsonian National ZooEXHIBIT INFORMATION
Places that keep or show the Brush-tailed bettong
Zoos, aquariums and other places whose official websites say they keep or show this animal.
Displays can change with the animals’ health and the seasons. Check each facility’s official website before you go.
RELATIVES
Others in Diprotodontia
MORE TO MEET
