Re: What are the characteristics of organisms in the order Diprotodontia?

Dear Jane

thank you for your question.

Diprotidibtia only occur in Australia, New Guinea, and New Zealand and all of 
them are marsupials. Marsupials are animals which care for and feed their young 
in a pouch. Examples are kangaroos, wombats, koalas, possums, and Tasmanian 
devils.
If you need more general information, images, stories, a search on the internet 
with the keyword Marsupials will bring up a mutitude of interesting information.

Scientifically spoken they are Mammals and include follwing families:

Family Phascolarctidae (Koalas)
Family Vombatidae (Wombats)
Family Phalangeridae (Brushtail Possums, Cuscuses)
Family Potoroidae (Rat-kangaroos)
Family Macropodidae (Kangaroos and Wallabies)
Family Burramyidae (Pygmy Possums)
Family Pseudocheiridae (Ringtailed Possums)
Family Petauridae (Gliders, Leadbeater's or Striped Possums)
Family Tarsipedidae (Honey Possums)
Family Acrobatidae (Feather-tail Gliders)

If you really want to go into the details here is the reference of the 
scientific article from Aplin and Archer, who "invented" the nomenclature.
They have been the first who sorted out who is who and who belongs to this group 
and who not. 

Aplin, K. P., and M. Archer. 1987. Recent advances in marsupial systematics with 
a new syncretic classification. Pp. xv-lxxii, in Possums and opossums: studies 
in evolution (M. Archer, ed.). Surrey Beatty and Sons Pty. Ltd. and Royal 
Zoological Society of New South Wales, Sydney, 1:1-400. 

God bless
Jurgen