The kowari (Dasyuroides byrnei), also known by its Diyari name kariri, is a small carnivorous marsupial native to the gibber deserts of central Australia.

The kowari was first described by Sir Walter Baldwin Spencer in 1896, based on a type specimen collected near Charlotte Waters in the Northern Territory.

For some time it was included in the genus Dasycercus with the mulgaras, however recent genetic work has confidently separated the kowari as their sister-taxon.

[3] It was once thought that there were two subspecies, however these were based on minor morphological differences and they are no longer recognised:[4] The kowari is most readily distinguished from its closest relatives, the mulgaras, by having a thick, bushy brush of black hairs fully encircling the end of its tail.

[4] Kowaris inhabit open gibber plains between braided river channels and sand dunes.

[7] Most animals of equal or smaller size to the kowari may be considered prey if the opportunity arises, including birds.

[10] In South Australia, none of its current range falls under conservation tenement, though a predator free reserve of 12,000 hectares has been set up near Andamooka Station where 12 kowaris were transferred to from around the Birdsville Track in 2022.

[4] There is strong evidence that overstocking of cattle has reduced kowari abundances at some sites, and possibly led to their extirpation at others.