Kangaroo Habitat

The kangaroo is an amazing member of the Australian fauna. The marsupial is closely related to the wallaby, wallaroo, Quokka and pademelon. There are around 63 living species of the family Macropodidae in the wild today. The kangaroo is endemic to Australia; however, smaller macropods from within the family are also found in New Guinea. Kangaroos thrive on the Australian landscape. They are not farmed, but are sought for their meat. This national symbol of Australia is commonly observed on the Australian Coat of Arms, currency and the tail of the nation's airline, Qantas. The marsupial enjoys an important place in Australian culture, with numerous references to its preferred habitat on the continent. The name kangaroo is derived from 'gangurru', a Guugu Yimidhirr word for 'grey animal'. The earliest mention of the animal appears in the 1770 account by explorer, Captain James Cook.

Kangaroo Habitat:

Male kangaroos are called bucks or kacks, while the females are called does or jills. The young ones are referred to as joeys. The Red Kangaroo is the largest surviving marsupial in the world. It thrives in the arid and semi-arid regions that lie in the center of the continent. The Eastern Grey Kangaroo is a common sight along the fertile eastern part of Australia. Western and South Australia and the Darling River basin are home to the Western Grey Kangaroo, while most of Australia's grassy plains and woodlands are inhabited by the Antilopine Kangaroo.

Kangaroo Facts:

Kangaroos have powerful hind legs and large feet. This physical adaptation helps the animal while leaping. Its muscular tail functions like a tripod-leg for balance. The most unique feature, common to all marsupials, is the stomach pouch or marsupium. This pouch remains the home for joeys, during postnatal development. Kangaroos hop for locomotion. They can cover ground at 70 km/h in search of food and water and to escape predators. Among the natural predators of kangaroo are wedge-tailed eagles, goannas, dingos, foxes and feral cats. The marsupial enjoys an average life expectancy of anywhere between 4 and 6 years.

The diet varies between the different species of kangaroos. These herbivores display a fondness for a variety of grasses, shrubs and hypogeal fungi. They are both, nocturnal and crepuscular, which means that they are most active by twilight and in the night. Kangaroos have incisors that are able to uproot grass close to the ground. They enjoy a wider bite on account of distinctly separate sides of the lower jaw and widely set lower incisors. Kangaroos are adept swimmers, and when pursued in water, they drown their predators by dunking the predator underwater with their powerful forepaws.

The digestive system of the kangaroo is unique to the fact that inspite of a herbivorous diet, methane is not exhaled. Instead, the hydrogen byproduct is converted into acetate and reused for the production of additional energy. Scientists are now showing keen interest in the possibility of transferring the bacteria responsible for this phenomenon to cattle. The young are born the size or a lima bean, after a 36-day gestation period. Joeys stay in the marsupium for a period of nine months. Female kangaroos have the ability to freeze the development of an embryo till the marsupium-dependent joey is big enough to leave the protection of the pouch. This inherent trait is referred to as diapause, and is usually displayed by females inhabiting areas with poor food sources.