What is a kangaroo?

The kangaroo is a large marsupial that hops on its powerful hind legs and is the largest living marsupial in the world. Australia is home to four species of kangaroo: the red kangaroo, the eastern grey kangaroo, the western grey kangaroo, and the antilopine kangaroo, plus dozens of related wallaby species.

Adult red kangaroo males, the largest, can stand more than two metres tall, weigh up to 90 kilograms, and reach speeds of 70 kilometres per hour over short distances. They live across the arid interior of Australia, while eastern grey and western grey kangaroos prefer woodlands and open forests, and antilopine kangaroos inhabit tropical savannas in the north. Kangaroos are herbivores, grazing mainly on grasses and small shrubs, and travel and feed in groups called mobs.

Female kangaroos carry their young, called joeys, in a pouch on the front of their bodies. Joeys are born tiny and undeveloped after a gestation of just 33 days, then climb to the pouch where they continue developing for about eight months. Kangaroos can practise embryonic diapause, suspending the development of a new pregnancy until conditions improve, which helps them survive Australia's unpredictable rainfall.

The kangaroo is one of two animals on the Australian Coat of Arms (the other is the emu), chosen because both are said to be unable to walk backwards, symbolising a nation that moves forward. Wild kangaroo populations across Australia number an estimated 35 to 50 million depending on rainfall, and a regulated commercial harvest under state quotas produces meat and leather for export. Kangaroo encounters are common on roads in regional areas, where kangaroo strikes are a leading cause of vehicle insurance claims, and many regional cars are fitted with bull bars in response.