Numbats are one of the rare marsupials that do not have a pouch. Instead, they have skinfolds that cover the babies.

On average, numbats can reach a length of 13–18 inches long and weigh 0.5–1.20 pounds.

A numbat’s overall coat can vary from gray to a warm brown, but they all have a red upper back, a black stripe along both sides of their face, and white stripes down their back and hind quarters.

They used to be found all over southern Australia, but now they are restricted to several small colonies usually in eucalyptus forests and grasslands.

In places that are abundant in termites, predators usually have big claws to dig the termites out. However, numbats don’t have such equipment and instead use the time of day and year and their mouths to catch termites. Numbats have a long, sticky tongue that sucks the termites up, and the ridges on the top of the mouth scrape the bugs off to be swallowed. Numbats can consume around 20,000 termites a day!

Numbats usually will use their sense of smell to find termite mounds, however, its sight also plays a role. In fact, the numbat has the highest visual perception of any other marsupial! Once the termite mound is found, a numbat’s claws are not strong enough to penetrate the concrete-like structure. Instead, they wait until the termites are active and going between the mound and feeding sites, to suck them up with their tongue.

Numbats usually will have only one litter a year. Instead of a pouch, this marsupial’s babies visibly hang from the mother’s stomach covered by a patch of golden hair. They will hang from the mother, drinking her milk, for about 6-7 months, which is when it becomes too difficult for the mother to carry them around. Once they start venturing out and eating termites, the babies’ snouts become long and pointy like the adult numbats.

Several things make the numbat an odd marsupial. Besides the obvious that it doesn’t have a pouch, numbats are not nocturnal. Numbats are active during the day so they can match when termites are active, which is the numbat’s main source of food. Marsupials are also known for having more teeth than other animals. Numbats have about 50 teeth but their jaw isn’t fully developed, and they rarely use their teeth for anything.

Both genders of numbats are territorial. One female or one male will claim a territory of up to 370 acres to defend against others of the same sex. Male and female territories overlap, and males will venture out of their area during mating season to find a mate.