What are the features of a kangaroo?

Answer 1

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 2

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 3

Koalas are mammals (but not bears). As mammals, features from a "classification" point include:

• they are marsupials, i.e. the young are born extremely undeveloped, and crawl into the mother's pouch where they latch onto a teat which swells in their mouth, securing them in the pouch
• Koalas give birth to live young, which then feed on mothers' milk
• they are vertebrates
• they breathe through lungs (rather than gills)
• they have fur (mammals have fur, skin or hair)
• they are warm blooded

  For information on specific features of the koala, see the related question.

Answer 4

• A Tree kangaroo has a long, cylindrical non-prehensile tail, which is used as a rudder as it jumps from branch to branch in the trees.
• Its body size averages 66cm in length, excluding the tail, which is about as long as the body.
• It has larger forelegs and smaller hindlegs than kangaroos and wallabies.
• It has shorter, rounded ears compared to its ground-dwelling counterparts.
• It feeds on fruits and leaves, rather than grasses.
• It has a red or mahogany-brown back with a yellow face, belly and feet. The long cylindrical tail is mostly yellow. Its colour enables it to camouflage effectively within rainforest trees.

Answer 5

A tree kangaroo is an arboreal-dwelling marsupial, spending much of its time feeding and resting in trees. To that end, it has numerous features quite different from those of its terrestrial cousins, and which give it more agility for its arboreal habitat.

• The tree kangaroo is a marsupial, giving birth to undeveloped young which must then continue its development in the mother's pouch.
• The tree kangaroo has a long, cylindrical non-prehensile tail, which is used as a rudder as it jumps from branch to branch in the trees.
• Its body size averages 66cm in length, excluding the tail, which is about as long as the body.
• It has larger forelegs and smaller hindlegs than kangaroos and wallabies.
• Its ears are short and rounded.
• The tree kangaroo has darker extremities, such as a black face and black paws, and is lighter on its underbelly. Its back is dark, ranging from a vivid dusky orange or rusty red to brown to dark grey, depending on the species.

Answer 6

Kangaroos have a number of special features.

• 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 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.

These adaptations are the same for most species of kangaroos, including Red Kangaroos, Grey Kangaroos, wallaroos and wallabies.

Answer 7

Kangaroos have large powerful hind legs, large feet designed for leaping, a long muscular tail for balance, and a small head. They are the only large animals to use hopping as a means of locomotion.