Editing Wombat (section)

==Ecology and behaviour==
[[File:Wombat burrow-Narawntapu.JPG|thumb|Wombat burrow and scat, [[Narawntapu National Park]], Tasmania]]

Wombats have an extraordinarily slow [[metabolism]], taking around 8 to 14 days to complete [[digestion]], which aids their survival in arid conditions.<ref name=EoM/> They generally move slowly.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Marinacci |first1=Peter |title=Wombat Behavior |url=https://www.wombania.com/wombats/wombat-behavior.htm |website=Wombania's Wombat Information Center |access-date=24 September 2020 |quote=Wombats walk with a somewhat awkward, shuffling or waddling gait.}}</ref> Wombats defend home territories centred on their burrows, and they react aggressively to intruders. The common wombat occupies a range of up to {{convert|23|ha|acre|abbr=on}}, while the hairy-nosed species have much smaller ranges, of no more than {{convert|4|ha|acre|0|abbr=on}}.<ref name=EoM/>

[[Dingo]]s and [[Tasmanian devil]]s prey on wombats. Extinct predators were likely to have included ''[[Thylacoleo]]'' and possibly the [[thylacine]] (Tasmanian tiger). Their primary defence is their toughened rear hide, with most of the [[Posterior (anatomy)|posterior]] made of [[cartilage]]. This, combined with its lack of a meaningful tail, makes it difficult for any predator that follows the wombat into its tunnel to bite and injure its target. When attacked, wombats dive into a nearby tunnel, using their rumps to block a pursuing attacker.<ref>{{cite web|title=Common Wombat|url=http://www.dpiw.tas.gov.au/inter.nsf/webpages/bhan-53f7kj?open|work=Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment|publisher=[[Government of Tasmania|Tasmanian Government]]|access-date=13 August 2010}}</ref> According to an [[Urban legends and myths|urban legend]], wombats sometimes allow an intruder to force its head over the wombat's back, and then use its powerful legs to crush the skull of the predator against the roof of the tunnel. However, there is no evidence to support this.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Boseley |first=Matilda |date=2020-11-04 |title=Wombats' deadly bums: how they use their 'skull-crushing' rumps to fight, play and flirt |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/nov/04/wombats-deadly-bums-how-they-use-their-skull-crushing-rumps-to-fight-play-and-flirt |access-date=2023-09-30 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

Wombats are generally quiet animals. Bare-nosed wombats can make a number of different sounds, more than the hairy-nosed wombats. Wombats tend to be more vocal during mating season. When angered, they can make hissing sounds. Their call sounds somewhat like a pig's squeal. They can also make grunting noises, a low growl, a hoarse cough, and a clicking noise.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Marinacci |first1=Peter |title=Wombat Vocalizations |url=https://www.wombania.com/wombats/wombat-vocalizations.htm |website=Wombania's Wombat Information Center |access-date=24 September 2020}}</ref>