# Tasmanian devil (*Sarcophilus harrisii*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/tasmanian-devil  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) is a marsupial mammal in the family Dasyuridae and the order Dasyuromorphia. It is a medium-sized, terrestrial and nocturnal scavenger with an adult body mass of 10 kg. Gestation lasts 26 days, females have 1 litter per year with a litter size of 2.9, and sexual maturity is reached at 2 years. Checklists record it in Australia, and the IUCN Red List classifies it as Endangered, a threatened category.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 6.5 kg – 10 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 8.1 years |
| Diet | Scavenger |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 13.1 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | Not recorded |
| Gestation | 26 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2.94 |
| Age at maturity | 2 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Reproduction | Live birth |
| Active | At night (nocturnal) |
| Lifestyle | Terrestrial |
| Conservation status | Endangered (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | 1 country |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Mammalia
- order: Dasyuromorphia
- family: Dasyuridae
- genus: Sarcophilus
- species: *Sarcophilus harrisii* (Boitard, 1841)

Synonyms: *Sarcophilus harrisii dixonae*, *Sarcophilus harrisii harrisii*, *Ursinus harrisii*

## Countries on record

Countries where Catalogue of Life checklists list the species. Many checklists carry no country data, so the list is often incomplete. It is not a range map.

Australia

## Common questions

### What kind of animal is the tasmanian devil?

The tasmanian devil is a marsupial mammal in the family Dasyuridae, order Dasyuromorphia.

### How heavy is a tasmanian devil?

An adult Tasmanian devil has a body mass of 10 kg, which places it in the medium size class.

### What does the tasmanian devil eat?

The tasmanian devil is a scavenger.

### Is the tasmanian devil endangered?

Yes. The IUCN Red List classifies the tasmanian devil as Endangered (EN), a threatened category.

### How long does a tasmanian devil live?

The tasmanian devil has a lifespan of 8.1 years, with values up to 13.1 years reported.

### How many young does a tasmanian devil have?

The tasmanian devil has a litter size of 2.9 young and 1 litter per year, after a gestation of 26 days.

### Which countries is the tasmanian devil recorded in?

Checklists record the tasmanian devil in Australia.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [EltonTraits 1.0: species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1), CC0 1.0, 1.0. Wilman, H., Belmaker, J., Simpson, J., de la Rosa, C., Rivadeneira, M.M. & Jetz, W. (2014) EltonTraits 1.0: Species-level foraging attributes of the world's birds and mammals. Ecology 95: 2027. https://doi.org/10.1890/13-1917.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3559887.v1
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/tasmanian-devil