The running of the quolls
Little mammals need speed for marathon mate-finding sessions
By Susan Milius
Male Northern quolls live fast and die young in a romantic frenzy of long-distance travel. And that’s only part of the reason why animal athletics specialist Robbie Wilson of the University of Queensland in Australia chases quolls with a plastic block.
Boldly polka-dotted marsupials a bit bigger than a squirrel, Northern quolls (Dasyurus hallucatus) are among the very few mammals that practice the lifestyle called semelparity, living for only a single, albeit intense, breeding season. They’re the furry, four-legged equivalent of salmon or petunias. Among Northern quolls, males are the one-season wonders. Females live for two or three.