Overview
The Bridled Nail-tail Wallaby (Onychogalea fraenata), also known as the Flashjack, is an iconic, beautifully marked Australian marsupial. Thought to be completely extinct for over thirty years, this charismatic wallaby was miraculously rediscovered in 1973 on a central Queensland cattle property. It is famous for the stark white ‘bridle’ stripe wrapping from behind its neck down across its shoulders, and the hard, horny nail concealed at the tip of its tail.
Biology and Physical Characteristics
The Bridled Nail-tail Wallaby has dense, soft ash-grey fur with a pure white chest and belly. A sharp, white bridle line runs from the center of the neck behind the ears, curving down behind each shoulder to the flank. Its tail terminates in a dark brush that hides a sharp, horny fingernail-like spur measuring 3 to 6 mm. Adult males possess muscular forearms and long, powerful hind feet engineered for explosive sprinting.
Behavior and Ecology
Nocturnal and solitary, the Flashjack spends blistering daylight hours resting in hollow logs or beneath low, prickly brigalow bushes. At dusk, it emerges to feed on nutritious herbs and forb leaves, rarely needing free water as it extracts all required moisture from dew and vegetation. When startled, it flees with blinding acceleration, keeping its arms tucked tight and head low, occasionally climbing inside hollow leaning trees to escape dingoes.
Conservation and Human Impact
Listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN, the species was nearly wiped out by extensive brigalow forest clearing for agriculture and intense predation by introduced red foxes and feral cats. Intensive captive breeding, feral predator-proof fenced reserves, and rigorous fox-baiting programs have steadily bolstered population numbers from near-extinction.
Interesting Factoid
The Bridled Nail-tail Wallaby was declared totally extinct in the mid-20th century until 1973, when a fencing contractor read an article in a magazine about extinct animals and realized the ‘flashjack’ wallabies hopping around his campsite were the lost species.