What helps kangaroos survive?

Answer 1

Kangaroos are uniquely adapted to survive living in Australia, a country that suffers frequent droughts.

• The mother kangaroo spends most of her adult life pregnant, but in drought times, she has the ability to indefinitely "freeze" the development of the young embryo until food sources are replenished.
• The mother can also produce two different types of milk to suit the needs of two different aged joeys. She might have a more mature joey that spends less time in the pouch, while a very young embryo has attached itself to a teat. Each joey has different milk requirements - which the mother is able to supply.
• Kangaroos are able to travel long distances at a high speed, expending very little energy. They are very energy-efficient, and this is linked directly to the physical action of bringing their hind legs up with each hop. Every hop literally refills the lungs.
• Kangaroos have large, strong tendons in their hind legs which act as "springs". The springing motion requires less energy than running does, so kangaroos are able to bound for longer distances than other mammals with the standard four legs can run. They have strong back legs and elongated hind feet for bounding.
• Kangaroos are strong swimmers. Many parts of Australia are subject to seasonal flooding rains, but the kangaroo's body shape does not prohibit it from swimming. In fact, kangaroos have been observed swimming to offshore islands off the southern coast. This is the only time the kangaroo's hind legs move independently of each other.
• Kangaroos are more active in the cooler hours of the early morning and the late afternoon. During the heat of the day they are more sedentary, lying around quietly and chewing their cud.
• The teeth of the kangaroo are continuously being worn down by the tough grasses they eat. Instead of continuously growing, once a kangaroo's front teeth are worn down completely, they fall out, and the back teeth move forwards to take the place of the worn front teeth. Kangaroos have four such pairs of chewing teeth.
• Kangaroos have the ability to hear very well: kangaroos can twitch their ears independently around to determine the direction of specific sounds, much as a cat does
• They have long, strong tails for balancing.
• In hot weather, kangaroos use saliva to cool down, licking their forearms where there is little muscle tissue and blood veins run close to the surface. When the saliva evaporates from the fur, it cools down the kangaroo.

Answer 2

Kangaroos have a number of unique adaptations which help them to survive.

• The mother kangaroo spends most of her adult life pregnant, but in drought times, she has the ability to indefinitely "freeze" the development of the young embryo until food sources are replenished.
• The mother can also produce two different types of milk to suit the needs of two different aged joeys. She might have a more mature joey that spends less time in the pouch, while a very young embryo has attached itself to a teat. Each joey has different milk requirements - which the mother is able to supply.
• Kangaroos are able to travel long distances at a high speed, expending very little energy. They are very energy-efficient, and this is linked directly to the physical action of bringing their hind legs up with each hop. Every hop literally refills the lungs.
• Kangaroos have large, strong tendons in their hind legs which act as "springs". The springing motion requires less energy than running does, so kangaroos are able to bound for longer distances than other mammals with the standard four legs can run. They have strong back legs and elongated hind feet for bounding.
• Kangaroos are strong swimmers. Many parts of Australia are subject to seasonal flooding rains, but the kangaroo's body shape does not prohibit it from swimming. In fact, kangaroos have been observed swimming to offshore islands off the southern coast. This is the only time the kangaroo's hind legs move independently of each other.
• Kangaroos are more active in the cooler hours of the early morning and the late afternoon. During the heat of the day they are more sedentary, lying around quietly and chewing their cud.
• The teeth of the kangaroo are continuously being worn down by the tough grasses they eat. Instead of continuously growing, once a kangaroo's front teeth are worn down completely, they fall out, and the back teeth move forwards to take the place of the worn front teeth. Kangaroos have four such pairs of chewing teeth.
• Kangaroos have the ability to hear very well: kangaroos can twitch their ears. around to determine the direction of specific sounds, much as a cat does.
• They have long, strong tails for balancing.
• Kangaroos are able to move their ears at a variety of angles to hear if there is any danger close to them.

Answer 3

Kangaroos are uniquely adapted to survive living in Australia, a country that suffers frequent droughts.

• The mother kangaroo spends most of her adult life pregnant, but in drought times, she has the ability to indefinitely "freeze" the development of the young embryo until food sources are replenished.
• The mother can also produce two different types of milk to suit the needs of two different aged joeys. She might have a more mature joey that spends less time in the pouch, while a very young embryo has attached itself to a teat. Each joey has different milk requirements - which the mother is able to supply.
• Kangaroos are able to travel long distances at a high speed, expending very little energy. They are very energy-efficient, and this is linked directly to the physical action of bringing their hind legs up with each hop. Every hop literally refills the lungs.
• Kangaroos have large, strong tendons in their hind legs which act as "springs". The springing motion requires less energy than running does, so kangaroos are able to bound for longer distances than other mammals with the standard four legs can run. They have strong back legs and elongated hind feet for bounding.
• Kangaroos are strong swimmers. Many parts of Australia are subject to seasonal flooding rains, but the kangaroo's body shape does not prohibit it from swimming. In fact, kangaroos have been observed swimming to offshore islands off the southern coast. This is the only time the kangaroo's hind legs move independently of each other.
• Kangaroos are more active in the cooler hours of the early morning and the late afternoon. During the heat of the day they are more sedentary, lying around quietly and chewing their cud.
• The teeth of the kangaroo are continuously being worn down by the tough grasses they eat. Instead of continuously growing, once a kangaroo's front teeth are worn down completely, they fall out, and the back teeth move forwards to take the place of the worn front teeth. Kangaroos have four such pairs of chewing teeth.
• Kangaroos have the ability to hear very well: kangaroos can twitch their ears independently around to determine the direction of specific sounds, much as a cat does
• They have long, strong tails for balancing.
• In hot weather, kangaroos use saliva to cool down, licking their forearms where there is little muscle tissue and blood veins run close to the surface. When the saliva evaporates from the fur, it cools down the kangaroo.

Answer 4

As a general species, kangaroos are not in any need of help. There are some smaller species, particularly some of the rock wallabies, which are endangered, but generally populations of kangaroos are thriving. The best thing man can do is simply leave them alone.

Answer 5

Grass, water and shelter are all that is needed for a kangaroo to survive. They are very adaptable creatures.

Kangaroos do need to drink regularly, so will not inhabit areas where there are no waterholes, unless the grass is particularly thick and lush. They prefer fresh vegetation, and will move on to new areas when the food in their area runs out.

Answer 6

Kangaroos do not need any help surviving in their natural habitat, as long as humans leave their habitat alone. Kangaroo numbers for many species are quite healthy. The best thing man can do is simply leave them alone.