ID needed

[Bezerker Viking]

I need some help with identifying this scat, I had a guess at Wallaby for the first pic but I'm a little unsure about the second.
These pics were both taken on a game trail and were found within 20 meters of each other.
As you can see the Wallaby one is fairly fresh (no more than a few days is my guess) and it didn't smell at all and only contained grass.
The other one I have no idea, it doesn't look like a Fox as there's no "pinch" at the end which would be usual for a carnivore and it's rather old, it could just be a dog.
Thanks.

You may use these pics for ID purposes here if you like.

 

[auscraft]

I agree the first is a macropod
The second from what I can see is canine. It does look rather weather including rain, But it does appear to have fur/hair in it

 

[Hairyman]

Both scats are quite voluminous, the first probably wallaby as you suggest.
The second is hard to say, it would be good to squash with a short stick and take an extreme closeup pic to see if
there is anything identifiable in it.
Context is important, the more info the better, what species are common in the area, what proximity to fresh or saltwater?
Is it in a national park or forestry reserve? If so there may be a species list online that may give some clues.

p.s. I cant see your link for some reason.

 

[Bezerker Viking]

Thanks for your confirmation on the pics auscraft it's good to see signs like this so close to an suburban area.
I should have broken some of the second scat up and taken another pic, I'll go back for more pics now. These were taken near a freshwater creek not far from my house.
Thanks.

 

[Bezerker Viking]

I went back for more pics of the second poo though it had rained for a day or so, the poo didn't actually have any hair in it on closer inspection as you thought auscraft,
it must have been mold and most of it had been washed away with the rain. I did break it apart this time and from what I can see it looks like it's made up of grass mostly.

About 500m away on another game trail I found a similar poo.

And it was right next to an old fox skeleton . . .

Thankx,
Bezerker Viking

 

[Dusty Miller]

Not all wallaby poo is round. Sometimes when plants are growing rapidly (like after the first rains for some time) they can upset the bacterial balance in the animals stomach for a time, producing everything along the spectrum from round balls up to completely liquid poos in a cowpat like pile. When rain falls on herbivore scat, fines are washed out of the surface and fibres under tension can spring free too, leaving a furry texture like above.

Although foxes will at times eat large amounts of vegetable matter, they don't have the teeth for good chewing of the fibres, so they have very coarse fibres present, often with a few beetle carapaces thrown in.

 

[Bezerker Viking]

Not all wallaby poo is round. Sometimes when plants are growing rapidly (like after the first rains for some time) they can upset the bacterial balance in the animals stomach for a time, producing everything along the spectrum from round balls up to completely liquid poos in a cowpat like pile. When rain falls on herbivore scat, fines are washed out of the surface and fibres under tension can spring free too, leaving a furry texture like above.

Although foxes will at times eat large amounts of vegetable matter, they don't have the teeth for good chewing of the fibres, so they have very coarse fibres present, often with a few beetle carapaces thrown in.

Thanks for good the advice Dusty

 

[Hairyman]

Nice close up pics BV and nice bleached fox skelton. Note that the skeleton is pretty much still articulated,probably meaning no large
scavenger has chewed on it. Did you keep the skull?
Note also that the scat hadn't bleached as dog scat often does after a few days and that the sheer volume of it
points to it being from a herbivore even before you look at it close up.

 

[Bezerker Viking]

Nice close up pics BV and nice bleached fox skelton. Note that the skeleton is pretty much still articulated,probably meaning no large
scavenger has chewed on it. Did you keep the skull?

Thankx Hairyman, It takes not bad pics, it's a new (second hand to me) Canon Digital (IXUS 9515) zoom 3x is > 6.2-18.6mm - 1:2.8-49< 10.0 mega pixels camera I recently got if anyone wanted to know, great little camera that goes everywhere with me now.

The fox skeleton as you said is still articulated, was great to study it for a bit, everything was there except for the fur, I did keep the skull
No bleaching on the poo, that's right for a dog, keep that in mind. A lot of people walk their dogs around here but not on the game trails I venture onto.
I will keep my eyes out in future to see if I can get a glimpse of what's is around the woods here.

Bezerker Viking