Wombat Butt Lore

A wombat has one of the strongest behinds on the planet. Fact.

It’s reinforced with a tough plate of cartilage across the lower back and rump, which helps protect it from predators. Wombats can enter their burrows and use the butt blocker technique to defend against unwanted intruders be it dogs, foxes, or other wombats. There are unverified reports they can kill using their butts to crush heads against the walls of their burrow however it’s not been observed in the wild, speculation at this stage only.

That butt gets itchy. And with stubby little legs and arms built more for digging than scratching, the wombat has to get creative.

Cut to: The Brink solar panel installation, now serving as a highly specialised wombat butt scratcher.

The first wombat to officially use this new facility is Mauve. She’s been spotted regularly at The Brink, and apparently considers the solar array to be her personal scratching post.

Some additional wombat facts, because one incredible butt is not enough:

• Wombats poop cubes. This is not a joke; they produce cubed faeces, and they stack them on rocks and logs to mark territory. The cube shape stops the droppings from rolling away. I’ve personally cleared wombat poo off my rock pile and it is in fact cube-like.
• They’re the largest burrowing herbivores in Australia. Their warrens can stretch many metres with multiple entrances, and some have dozens of tunnels and chambers.
• They can run up to 40 km/h in short bursts, which is just under Usain Bolt’s top speed. Deceiving when they look like logs with legs.
• Their teeth never stop growing, which is handy when your diet is tough grasses, roots, bark, and shrubs. They can take up to two weeks to fully digest a meal.
• They’re marsupials with a backward-facing pouch, so dirt doesn’t fill it while they’re digging. Baby wombats (joeys) are born furless and tiny, then stay in the pouch for 9–10 months.
• They are honestly one of the cutest animals on the planet (this is my own fact but I’ll fight anyone who disagrees)

In short: titanium butt, cube poo, burrow empire, surprisingly fast, and crushingly cute. And probably the main reason I wanted to buy land in Tasmania.