Hunt on for native water rat
Among the long and growing list of Australia's endangered native wildlife species, they are perhaps one of the least known and most easily confused.
The rakali - colloquially known as the Australian water rat - has been mistakenly called a platypus, an otter and plenty of other things by observers for years.
The frequent misidentifications are not a danger in themselves but they point to a bigger problem, threatening efforts to save the species.
More than 200 years after it was discovered, not much is known about the rakali.
Now a project by WA's Department of Parks and Wildlife and conservation group World Wildlife Fund aims to change that.
As part of a plan launched this week, the department and WWF are calling on the public - "citizen scientists" - to report sightings of the animals to broaden understanding.
WWF spokeswoman Sabrina Trocini said the rakali was an "elusive dweller of rivers, lakes and sheltered ocean beaches".
However, there were significant gaps in the knowledge of their distribution in WA, except for the fact they have declined in the Wheatbelt because of salinity and clearing.
"Rakali are mysterious, shy creatures, so it can be difficult to study them," Dr Trocini said. "We hope to get hundreds of extra pairs of eyes on the ground and the water to help us get a better understanding of where they live and what threats they face."
She said they were bigger than introduced rats, have partially webbed feet and were easily distinguished by their broad, blunt nose and the white tip on their long, thick tails.
They were also particularly active around sunset.
Signs included footprints or tail drag marks in mud or sand and feeding "middens", a dense scattering of shell pieces left after meals of crabs, crayfish, aquatic insects or mussels.
The rakali community survey will run until March.
Report sightings at rakali@wwf. org.au or call 6231 0223
