Did you know that up to 40,000 years ago Australia was populated by the likes of four-metre tall kangaroos?
These huge marsupials were part of Australia's now-extinct megafauna, which are defined as animal species with a body mass at least 130 per cent greater than that of their closest living relatives living today.
A current Queensland University of Technology-led collaboration with University of Adelaide is charting the connection between past and present Australian fauna, and has demonstrated that the banded hare-wallaby is one of our last links to the now-extinct giants.
The results of the scientific endeavor were published by Italian QUT scholar and molecular biologist Manuela Cascini.
As Ms Cascini explained to SBS Italian, the research analysed evolutionary and genetic relationships between kangaroos living today and those that existed thousands of years ago.
The 'giant kangaroos' also known as Procoptodon died out 40 thousand years ago. Procoptodon goliah was mainly known for living in semi-arid areas of what is now South Australia and New South Wales.
Extinct Procoptodon Goliah Kangaroo Source: Getty Images
Working with University of Adelaide’s Professor Alan Cooper and Dr Kieren Mitchell, who undertook the DNA sequencing at the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA, Ms Cascini was able to analyse a small fragment of a fossil of the species.
The research revealed that the closest ‘relative’ of these giant kangaroos is the banded hare-wallaby (Lagostrophus fasciatus), which currently lives on Western Australian islands and is considered an endangered species.
But the QUT research is not limited to tracing the family tree of the giant kangaroos. The data will, in fact, be used to develop conservation plans to protect the small wallaby from extinction.
"If you understand evolutionary history, you can understand the problems that animals can encounter today and how to prevent them in the future," explained Ms Cascini.
The DNA sample used by Ms Cascini came from a small fragment of the inner ear of a giant kangaroo fossil rediscovered in Tasmania.
Banded hare-wallaby (Lagostrophus fasciatus), about 40 cm long, the only kangaroo family member with stripes on back. Bernier Island, Western Australia Source: Auscape/UIG via Getty Images
Being able to work on fossil DNA is rare, especially in Australia as DNA decays over time, particularly in extreme weather conditions such as heat or cold.
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According to the World Wildlife Fund, more than half of the world's wild animals have become extinct in the last 50 years, and more - such as the banded-hare wallaby - are at risk of extinction. Even koalas are now among Australia's vulnerable species.
"Australia has the highest concentration of endangered mammals in the world," Ms Cascini told SBS Italian. "Australian marsupials are a very special fauna that only lives here in Australia, which makes them even more interesting and worthy of protection."
Prior to her research in Australia, Ms Cascini studied another endangered species: the Italian wolf. She also studied the animal's evolution to find new ways to preserve its future.
Dr Manuela Cascini and her supervisor Professor Matthew Phillips, QUT Source: Courtesy of Manuela Cascini
