What are peculiarities of kangaroos?

Answer 1

• Kangaroos are marsupials endemic to Australia.
• There are over 60 species, ranging in size from the tiny musky-rat kangaroo to the better-known large Red Kangaroo.
• The Red Kangaroo is the largest of all marsupials.
• The mother kangaroo can carry two different aged joeys simultaneously, yet feed them on two different types of milk according to their developmental needs.
• Female kangaroos spend their reproductive years in an almost continuous state of pregnancy. They have the ability to "suspend" the development of the embryo, depending on whether the environmental conditions are favourable to the raising of another joey, such as when food sources are plentiful.
• The kangaroo is on the Australian dollar coin.
• Kangaroos chew their cud, like cattle.
• Kangaroos have just four pairs of teeth. As the front ones are worn down by chewing tough grasses, they fall out, and the ones from the back move forwards to take their place.
• Kangaroos are strong swimmers.
• If they are near waterways when threatened by animals such as domestic dogs, kangaroos have been known to drag the dog down into the water to try to drown it.
• The kangaroo and emu are on the Australian coat of arms because neither creature has ever been observed walking backwards. They have come to represent progress and an unwillingness to back down.
• Male kangaroos often "box" amongst each other, playfully, for dominance, or in competition for mates. Their forepaws are short but dextrous in punching and grappling with the foe, but there is real danger in a serious kick with the hindleg. The sharp toenails can disembowel an opponent.
• 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.
• 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.

Answer 2

• Baby Joeys are born about 2cm long, and extremely undeveloped.
• The joey it is completely blind and hairless when first born.
• The joey moves purely by instinct, crawling up the mother's fur to the pouch, where it attaches to a teat. The teat then swells in the joey's mouth, securing it through all the mother's movement so it cannot be dislodged, until it has grown for several weeks.
• A mother kangaroo is capable of having more than one joey of different ages in the pouch at the same time, feeding on different types of milk.

Answer 3

• Tree kangaroos live in the tropical rainforests of far north Australia, and the island of New Guinea.
• Tree kangaroos are arboreal-dwelling, spending much of their time feeding and resting in trees. Red and grey kangaroos are strictly ground-dwelling, and cannot climb at all.
• Tree kangaroos are smaller and stockier than ground-dwelling kangaroos, and more agile. They have stronger front legs to assist with climbing, and longer tails to help with balance.
• Tree kangaroos eat leaves and fruit, whereas most of the ground-dwelling kangaroos feed on grasses and new shoots of eucalyptus and other native trees.

Answer 4

Kangaroos are grey-brown, red-brown or golden-brown marsupials, meaning they are pouched mammals. Their young are born extremely undeveloped, about the size of a kidney bean, and make their way from the mother's birth canal, up a track through her fur which she prepares by licking, to her pouch. There, the joey latches onto a teat which swells in its mouth so it cannot be accidentally dislodged during the mother's movements.

The mother kangaroo is able to feed two different aged joeys simultaneously with different milk which meets each joey's nutritional requirements.

Kangaroos' ears are pointed and able to move in many different directions as they listen for potential dangers.

They have large hindquarters and long feet with which they can hop for long distances. They do not tire, as the hopping motion actually refills their lungs as they move - therefore, there is minimum expenditure of energy.

There are a variety of different sizes of kangaroos, and they are classified according to their sizes.

Answer 5

Baby kangaroos are called joeys. The gestation period lasts 31-36 days. Baby kangaroos are the size of a jellybean when they are born. They are born blind and hairless. A baby kangaroo is born from the female's uterus and then climbs up the outer fur of the female and into the upward facing pouch where it attaches itself to a nipple until it becomes stronger. The mother kangaroo licks a path to the pouch to help guide the joey. Baby kangaroos live in their mother's pouch and feed by drinking milk. The teat swells in the joey's mouth, securing it in place so it cannot be accidentally dislodged. The joey will usually stay in the pouch for about 6-9 months until it is developed enough to leave the pouch and move about independently.

Female kangaroos can often be in a state of almost permanent pregnancy, with an embryo "suspended" until the mother's body is ready to release it - whether that be when another joey is sufficiently weaned, or feeding conditions have improved.