A tiger quoll is a spotted, carnivorous marsupial and the largest native marsupial predator on mainland Australia. Also known as the spotted-tailed quoll (Dasyurus maculatus), it’s about the size of a domestic cat, though slimmer with shorter legs.

Marsupials are mammals that raise their young in a pouch, and the tiger quoll is the second-largest carnivorous marsupial in the world, after the Tasmanian devil. Their fur ranges from rich reddish-brown to dark brown, with bold white spots across the back and sides and along the tail. It’s the only quoll with a spotted tail. They have a pointed face with a pink nose, sharp teeth, and bright eyes.

In terms of size, males are larger than females (a pattern called sexual dimorphism). Males typically weigh around 3.5 kg (7-8 lb) and females about 1.8 kg (4 lb), though big males can reach 7 kg (15 lb) and large females about 4 kg (9 lb). Body length runs roughly 35-76 cm (14-30 in), with a tail of 34-55 cm (13-22 in), so a big male can measure over 1.2 m (4 ft) from nose to tail tip. The genus name Dasyurus means “hairy tail,” and maculatus is Latin for “spotted.”