Ecology of Peradorcas concinna in Arnhemland in a wet and a dry season.

Peradorcas concinna, the little rock wallaby or nabarlek, rests during the day in clefts low down in sandstone outcrops but may move several hundred metres out on to the black soil plains at night, feeding on short grasses in the wet season and mainly the fern Marsilea in the dry season. The larger Petrogale brachyotis rests in clefts during the day high in the sandstone outcrops, does not move far from the outcrops and was not seen foraging on the black soil plains. Petrogale browses on softer vegetation, mainly Terminalia leaves and seeds, but not on the abrasive Marsilea. There is some dietary overlap between the two species of rock wallabies in the wet season but not in the dry season. Body weights and general activity levels indicate that the animals may be under greater stress in the dry season than in the wet. The high levels of abrasive silica in the diet of Peradorcas seem to be related to the animal's unique capacity to continually replace teeth.-from Authors