"We saw several sorts of dung of different animals, one of which Wilson called a "Whom-batt", which is an animal about 20 inches high, with short legs and a thick body with a large head, round ears, and very small eyes; is very fat, and has much the appearance of a badger." This is how wombats have first been recordly described by John Price in 1798 in Australia.
In the past, countless wombats were killed for food, and by pastoralists who considered them vermin. All species are now protected across Australia, except in Victoria, where Bare-nosed Wombats are still regarded as an agricultural pest. Permits are required to control their numbers. Habitat loss and competition for food with introduced herbivores – rabbits, cattle, sheep and goats – are now the biggest threats for wombats. Sarcoptic mange, sometimes spread by foxes and dogs, can also kill entire colonies. The Northern Hairy-nosed Wombat is now critically endangered and is considered one of the rarest mammals in the world.