A member of the living marsupial crown group, including all descendants of its last common ancestor. marsupials include several independently specialized feeding and locomotor lineages.
Australidelphia is a group of marsupials containing the Australian radiation together with the South American Microbiotheria. Its membership illustrates why present geographical distribution alone is insufficient to reconstruct evolutionary relationships.
Microbiotheria is a marsupial lineage represented today in South America. Its relationship to Australian marsupials is important for reconstructing the evolutionary and geographical history of Australidelphia.
Dasyuromorphia is a group of Australasian marsupials including quolls and the Tasmanian devil. Many members feed on other animals. Their ecological resemblance to some placental predators provides examples of convergent evolution.
An extinct predatory marsupial. Its superficial resemblance to canids illustrates convergent evolution, not membership in Carnivora.
Diprotodontia is a group of marsupials including kangaroos, koalas, wombats and many possums. Its name refers to the prominent paired lower incisors. The group encompasses contrasting forms of locomotion and diet within one lineage.
A member of the kangaroo and wallaby lineage, many of which combine specialized grinding teeth with foregut fermentation.
An early Eocene Australian marsupial whose ankle material informs the early history of Australidelphia. [ref]
Australia's Oldest Marsupial Fossils and their Biogeographical Implications by Robin M. D. Beck and others. PLoS ONE 3, e1858; Djarthia tarsals and australidelphian relationships
