---
title: "Purple-necked Rock Wallaby"
description: "Petrogale purpureicollis — Mammiferi. The purple-necked rock-wallaby (Petrogale purpureicollis) is a species of rock-wallaby first described in 1924 by Albert Sherbourne Le Souef, then director of the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, who noted a purple colouration around the neck and cranial features that distinguish it from other rock-wallaby species."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/it/animal/purple-necked-rock-wallaby
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Purple-necked Rock Wallaby

> Petrogale purpureicollis — Mammiferi. The purple-necked rock-wallaby (Petrogale purpureicollis) is a species of rock-wallaby first described in 1924 by Albert Sherbourne Le Souef, then director of the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, who noted a purple colouration around the neck and cranial features that distinguish it from other rock-wallaby species.

- Scientific name: *Petrogale purpureicollis*
- Category: `mammals` (Mammiferi)
- Habitats: unknown
- iNaturalist observations: 99
- Wikidata: [Q209668](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q209668)
- iNaturalist taxon: [42927](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/42927)

## Names

- en: Purple-necked Rock Wallaby
- de: Purpurnacken-Felskänguru
- es: Ualabí Rupestre de Cuello Púrpura
- fr: Petrogale à cou pourpre

## Countries with the most observations

AU (95)

## Summary

The purple-necked rock-wallaby (Petrogale purpureicollis) is a species of rock-wallaby first described in 1924 by Albert Sherbourne Le Souef, then director of the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, who noted a purple colouration around the neck and cranial features that distinguish it from other rock-wallaby species.
The purple colouration was thought by some sceptical scientists to be due to the animal rubbing against a dye, but the animal does in fact secrete a purple pigment. The pigment is known to wash off in the rain and fade away after death, causing some possible confusion with other rock-wallaby species.
The…

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple-necked_rock-wallaby

## Photo

![Purple-necked Rock Wallaby](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/purple-necked-rock-wallaby/medium.jpg)

Photo: Stuart · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/395034765

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/purple-necked-rock-wallaby?lang=it` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).