The phascogales (members of the eponymous genus Phascogale), also known as wambengers or mousesacks,[1] are carnivorous Australian marsupials of the family Dasyuridae. There are three species: the brush-tailed phascogale (Phascogale tapoatafa), the red-tailed phascogale (P. calura), and the northern brush-tailed phascogale (P. pirata). As with a number of dasyurid species, the males live for only one year, dying after a period of frenzied mating. The name wambenger comes from the Nyungar language.[2] The term Phascogale was coined in 1824 by Coenraad Jacob Temminck in reference to the brush-tailed phascogale, and means "pouched weasel". All three species are listed as either Near Threatened or Vulnerable by the IUCN.
The following is a phylogenetic tree based on mitochondrial genome sequences:[3]
The genus consists of the following three species:
| Image | Scientific name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|
| Brush-tailed phascogale – Phascogale tapoatafa | southeast Australia from South Australia to mid-coastal Queensland, Western Australia | |
| Red-tailed phascogale – Phascogale calura | south-western Western Australia | |
| Northern brush-tailed phascogale – Phascogale pirata | northern Australia. | |
Mating generally happens between May and July. All males die soon after mating. Females give birth to about 6 young ones about 30 days after mating. Phascogales do not have the true pouch that is found in most other marsupials https://web.archive.org/web/20140109052904/http://www.arkive.org/brush-tailed-phascogale/phascogale-tapoatafa/http://www.marsupialsociety.org.au/keeping-marsupials-dasyurids.html. Instead, they form temporary folds of skin - sometimes called a "pseudo-pouch" http://jeb.biologists.org/content/205/24/3775.full.pdf around the mammary glands during pregnancy. Young stay in this pseudo-pouch area, nursing for about 7 weeks before being moved to a nest where they stay until they are weaned at about 20 weeks of age. Females live for about 3 years, and generally produce one litter.