Tasmanian Devil Pictures
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Two Tasmanian Devils
Two young devils pose in Tasmanian Devil Conservation Park in Taranna, Tasmania. The facility, a refuge for the island's injured and orphaned wildlife, is involved in the international response to the outbreak of the deadly devil facial tumor disease.
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Sleeping Tasmanian Devil
Tasmanian devils are usually nocturnal animals, sleeping in burrows or hollow logs during the day and emerging at night to feed. Occasionally individuals such as this snoozing specimen in Tasmania will break the pattern and come out in daylight to bask in the sunshine.
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Scarred Tasmanian Devil
Most adult Tasmanian devils bear facial scars from the many run-ins these irascible marsupials have with one another. Such injuries are usually the result of mating duels, but feeding spats can turn nasty as well. Scientists think these facial bites are the way devil facial tumor disease is being spread among devils.
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Running Tasmanian Devil
Captive Tasmanian devils such as this one at the National Zoo in Canberra, Australia, could be critical in the fight to save the species from extinction. A virulent, lethal cancer strain has wiped out more than half of Tasmania's wild devils, and officials are bolstering captive breeding programs to preserve a healthy "insurance" population should the disease continue to spread.
