Elected representatives in government are in charge of the policy and funding that can make or break saving threatened species. Their decisions and actions matter.
Durack has or used to have 72 threatened animals within its boundaries. One of them is me, the Brush-tailed Rabbit-rat.
We took care to attach appropriate images that are as close to representative of each species as our resources and the availability of images allowed. However, we could not ensure perfect accuracy in every case. Some images show species that share the same genus but not at the species or subspecies level.
Brush-tailed Rabbit-rat
Conilurus penicillatus
Status: Vulnerable
The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) lists threatened species under six categories:
Extinct, Extinct in the wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Conservation dependent. Read more about these categories
Conilurus penicillatus is found across 2 electorates.
The brush-tailed rabbit-rat occurs in monsoonal areas that are not burnt annually. It is active at dusk and rests during the day in dens in hollow trees with trunks at least 24 cm in diameter, in logs on the ground and occasionally in Pandanus fronds. It is an active climber, but also forages on the ground where it is very agile, bounding rapidly. It is patchily distributed throughout the Kimberley and the Top End. Extensive declines have occurred since the 1990s.¹
Explore more about this species on the Atlas of Living Australia
Adverse fire regimes
Habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation
Invasive species and diseases
Explore more about the threats facing species on our Resources page.
- Grass Wattle (Acacia anomala)
- Leafless Rock Wattle (Acacia aphylla)
- Blunt Wattle (Acacia aprica)
- Watheroo Wattle (Acacia aristulata)
- Large-fruited Tammin Wattle (Acacia ataxiphylla subsp. magna)
- Western Wheatbelt Wattle (Acacia brachypoda)
- Acacia chapmanii subsp. australis (Acacia chapmanii subsp. australis)
- Spiral-fruited Wattle (Acacia cochlocarpa subsp. cochlocarpa)
- Velvety Spiral Pod Wattle (Acacia cochlocarpa subsp. velutinosa)
- Sandpaper Wattle (Acacia denticulosa)
- Forest's Wattle (Acacia forrestiana)
- Gibson Wattle (Acacia imitans)
- Acacia leptoneura (Acacia leptoneura)
- Wongan Gully Wattle (Acacia pharangites)
- Dwarf Rock Wattle (Acacia pygmaea)
- Recurved Wattle (Acacia recurvata)
- Splendid Wattle (Acacia splendens)
- a shrub (Acacia unguicula)
- Vassal's Wattle (Acacia vassalii)
- Tangled Wattle (Acacia volubilis)
- Wilson's Wattle (Acacia wilsonii)
- Woodman's Wattle (Acacia woodmaniorum)
- Slender Andersonia (Andersonia gracilis)
- Androcalva adenothalia (Androcalva adenothalia)
- Straggling Androcalva (Androcalva bivillosa)
- Dwarf Green Kangaroo Paw (Anigozanthos viridis subsp. terraspectans)
- Bindoon Starbush (Asterolasia nivea)
- Orange Dryandra (Banksia aurantia)
- Banksia catoglypta (Banksia catoglypta)
- Dark-bract Banksia (Banksia fuscobractea)
- Summer Honeypot (Banksia mimica)
- Northern Serrate Dryandra (Banksia serratuloides subsp. perissa)
- Southern Serrate Dryandra (Banksia serratuloides subsp. serratuloides)
- Small-petalled Beyeria (Beyeria lepidopetala)
- Small Dragon Orchid (Caladenia barbarella)
- Northern Dwarf Spider-orchid (Caladenia bryceana subsp. cracens)
- Hinged Dragon Orchid (Caladenia drakeoides)
- Elegant Spider-orchid (Caladenia elegans)
- Hoffman's Spider-orchid (Caladenia hoffmanii)
- King Spider-orchid (Caladenia huegelii)
- Kalbarri Spider-orchid (Caladenia wanosa)
- Stilted Tinsel Lily (Calectasia pignattiana)
- Griffin's Waxflower (Chamelaucium sp. Cataby )
- Gingin Wax (Chamelaucium sp. Gingin )
- Prostrate Flame Pea (Chorizema humile)
- Limestone Pea (Chorizema varium)
- One-headed Smokebush (Conospermum densiflorum subsp. unicephalatum)
- Conospermum galeatum (Conospermum galeatum)
- Irwin's Conostylis (Conostylis dielsii subsp. teres)
- Small-flowered Conostylis (Conostylis micrantha)
- Wongan Conostylis (Conostylis wonganensis)
- Fine-leaved Darwinia (Darwinia acerosa)
- Mogumber Bell (Darwinia carnea)
- Chapman's Bell (Darwinia chapmaniana)
- Muchea Bell (Darwinia foetida)
- Mason's Darwinia (Darwinia masonii)
- Harlequin Bell (Darwinia polychroma)
- Native Foxglove (Dasymalla axillaris)
- Three Springs Daviesia (Daviesia bursarioides)
- Diels' Daviesia (Daviesia dielsii)
- Wongan Cactus (Daviesia euphorbioides)
- Beautiful Daviesia (Daviesia speciosa)
- Diplolaena andrewsii (Diplolaena andrewsii)
- Tall Donkey Orchid (Diuris drummondii)
- Dwarf Bee-orchid (Diuris micrantha)
- Purdie's Donkey-orchid (Diuris purdiei)
- Kneeling Hammer-orchid (Drakaea concolor)
- Glossy-leafed Hammer Orchid (Drakaea elastica)
- Morseby Range Drummondita (Drummondita ericoides)
- Keighery's Eleocharis (Eleocharis keigheryi)
- Dwarf Desert Spike-rush (Eleocharis papillosa)
- Eremophila glabra subsp. chlorella (Eremophila glabra subsp. chlorella)
- Koobabbie Eremophila (Eremophila koobabbiensis)
- Silky Eremophila (Eremophila nivea)
- Pinnate-leaf Eremophila (Eremophila pinnatifida)
- Resinous Eremophila (Eremophila resinosa)
- Beaked Eremophila (Eremophila rostrata)
- Rough Emu Bush (Eremophila scaberula)
- Eremophila sp. Narrow leaves (Eremophila sp. Narrow leaves )
- Wongan Eremophila (Eremophila ternifolia)
- Resinous Poverty Bush (Eremophila vernicosa)
- Varnish Bush (Eremophila viscida)
- Badgingarra Box (Eucalyptus absita)
- Yanchep Mallee (Eucalyptus argutifolia)
- Beard's Mallee (Eucalyptus beardiana)
- Seppelt Range Gum (Eucalyptus ceracea)
- Yandanooka Mallee (Eucalyptus crispata)
- Paynes Find Mallee (Eucalyptus crucis subsp. praecipua)
- Mallee Box (Eucalyptus cuprea)
- Dandaragan Mallee (Eucalyptus dolorosa)
- Eneabba Mallee (Eucalyptus impensa)
- Johnson's Mallee (Eucalyptus johnsoniana)
- Laterite Mallee (Eucalyptus lateritica)
- Scaly Butt Mallee (Eucalyptus leprophloia)
- Mountain White Gum (Eucalyptus mooreana)
- Midlands Gum (Eucalyptus pruiniramis)
- Silver Mallet (Eucalyptus recta)
- Rose Mallee (Eucalyptus rhodantha)
- Cork Mallee (Eucalyptus suberea)
- Jingymia Mallee (Eucalyptus synandra)
- Cadda Road Mallee (Eucalyptus x balanites)
- Silky Frankenia (Frankenia conferta)
- Scale-leaf Poison (Gastrolobium appressum)
- Spike Poison (Gastrolobium glaucum)
- Hook-point Poison (Gastrolobium hamulosum)
- Nangetty Grass (Glyceria drummondii)
- Goodenia arthrotricha (Goodenia arthrotricha)
- Grevillea althoferorum (Grevillea althoferorum)
- Mt Lesueur Grevillea (Grevillea batrachioides)
- Grevillea bracteosa subsp. howatharra (Grevillea bracteosa subsp. howatharra)
- Foote's Grevillea (Grevillea calliantha)
- Christine's Grevillea (Grevillea christineae)
- a shrub (Grevillea corrugata)
- Curved-leaf Grevillea (Grevillea curviloba subsp. curviloba)
- Narrow curved-leaf Grevillea (Grevillea curviloba subsp. incurva)
- Phalanx Grevillea (Grevillea dryandroides subsp. dryandroides)
- Hairy Phalanx Grevillea (Grevillea dryandroides subsp. hirsuta)
- Zig Zag Grevillea (Grevillea flexuosa)
- Spreading Grevillea (Grevillea humifusa)
- Grevillea murex (Grevillea murex)
- Pythara Grevillea (Grevillea pythara)
- Grevillea sp. Gillingarra (Grevillea sp. Gillingarra )
- Net-veined Gyrostemon (Gyrostemon reticulatus)
- Lesueur Hakea (Hakea megalosperma)
- Broad-fruited Haloragis (Haloragis platycarpa)
- Red Snakebush (Hemiandra gardneri)
- Chapman's Hensmania (Hensmania chapmanii)
- Ninghan Violet (Hybanthus cymulosus)
- Hypocalymma angustifolium subsp. Hutt River (Hypocalymma angustifolium subsp. Hutt River )
- Long-leaved Myrtle (Hypocalymma longifolium)
- Hypocalymma sylvestre (Hypocalymma sylvestre)
- Pungent Jacksonia (Jacksonia pungens)
- Kalbarri Leschenaultia (Lechenaultia chlorantha)
- Scarlet Leschenaultia (Lechenaultia laricina)
- Beaked Lepidosperma (Lepidosperma rostratum)
- Thick-margined Leucopogon (Leucopogon marginatus)
- Leucopogon nitidus (Leucopogon nitidus)
- Hidden Beard-heath (Leucopogon obtectus)
- Leucopogon sp. Flynn (Leucopogon sp. Flynn )
- Woolly Lysiosepalum (Lysiosepalum abollatum)
- Keighery's Macarthuria (Macarthuria keigheryi)
- Marianthus paralius (Marianthus paralius)
- Wongan Melaleuca (Melaleuca sciotostyla)
- Wongan Microcorys (Microcorys eremophiloides)
- Minnie Daisy (Minuria tridens)
- Edgar Range Pandanus (Pandanus spiralis var. flammeus)
- Sandplain Duck Orchid (Paracaleana dixonii)
- Spiral-leaved Patersonia (Patersonia spirifolia)
- Petrophile nivea (Petrophile nivea)
- Wongan Eriostemon (Philotheca wonganensis)
- Mt Augustus Foxglove (Pityrodia augustensis)
- Pityrodia scabra subsp. scabra (Pityrodia scabra subsp. scabra)
- Pityrodia sp. Marble Bar (Pityrodia sp. Marble Bar )
- Northampton Midget Greenhood (Pterostylis sinuata)
- Dwarf Pea (Ptychosema pusillum)
- Wongan Rhagodia (Rhagodia acicularis)
- Ricinocarpos brevis (Ricinocarpos brevis)
- Saltmat (Roycea pycnophylloides)
- Mingenew Everlasting (Schoenia filifolia subsp. subulifolia)
- Fringed Fire-bush (Seringia exastia)
- Spiral Bush (Spirogardnera rubescens)
- Three-flowered Stachystemon (Stachystemon nematophorus)
- Stylidium amabile (Stylidium amabile)
- Asymmetric Triggerplant (Stylidium asymmetricum)
- Stylidium coroniforme subsp. amblyphyllum (Stylidium coroniforme subsp. amblyphyllum)
- Wongan Hills Triggerplant (Stylidium coroniforme subsp. coroniforme)
- Stylidium semaphorum (Stylidium semaphorum)
- Styphelia longissima (Styphelia longissima)
- Quartz-loving Synaphea (Synaphea quartzitica)
- Selena's Synaphea (Synaphea sp. Fairbridge Farm )
- Large-articled Samphire (Tecticornia bulbosa)
- Tetratheca nephelioides (Tetratheca nephelioides)
- Cinnamon Sun Orchid (Thelymitra dedmaniarum)
- Star Sun-orchid (Thelymitra stellata)
- Sandplain Thomasia (Thomasia glabripetala)
- Hill Thomasia (Thomasia montana)
- Green Hill Thomasia (Thomasia sp. Green Hill )
- Mountain Thryptomene (Thryptomene wittweri)
- Granite Pink (Tribonanthes purpurea)
- White Featherflower (Verticordia albida)
- Hughan's Featherflower (Verticordia hughanii)
- Scaly-leaved Featherflower (Verticordia spicata subsp. squamosa)
- Wongan Featherflower (Verticordia staminosa subsp. staminosa)
- Long-flowered Nancy (Wurmbea tubulosa)
You are in federal electorate Durack.