Sex and no sleep may be killing endangered quolls, new study finds

The male northern quoll, a small endangered marsupial, is walking so far and sleeping so little in its desperate search for sex that it may be causing its own early death, according to a study published Wednesday.

A small endangered marsupial is dying for sex — literally.

The male northern quoll — a carnivorous mammal about the size of a small domestic cat — is walking so far and sleeping so little in its desperate search for a female mate that it may be causing its own early death, according to a study published Wednesday.

The quoll lives in parts of western and northern Australia and is known for its unusual mating habits. The males are so-called suicidal reproducers that die after a single mating season, while females continue to live and breed for as long as four years.

Now new research from two Australian teams, at the University of the Sunshine Coast and the University of Queensland, has shed light on why that may be.

The researchers fitted tiny backpacks with trackers onto both male and female quolls on Groote Eylandt, a large island off the coast of Australia’s Northern Territories, and found striking differences in male and female behavior.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/sex-no-sleep-killing-endangered-quolls-new-study-rcna68533

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