Macropus rufus
The red kangaroo is the largest marsupial in the world and is Australia's largest land mammal.
The female kangaroo has a pocket of skin called the "marsupium" on her belly which is used to carry her young in. The marsupium (pouch) keeps the young safe from predation and the environment during their postnatal development.
After a short gestation period of only 6 to 7 weeks the female gives birth. The new born baby is only about the size of a cherry! The new born climbs up and into the mothers pouch where it will stay for 6 to 7 months.
A baby kangaroo is called a 'joey'. The males is called a 'buck' or 'Jack' and the females a 'doe' or 'Jill'.
The collective noun for a group of kangaroos is a 'MOB'.
The male red kangaroo is a reddish-brown colour and the female bluish-grey. Females are sometimes called "Blue fliers" because of their blue colour.
The male red kangaroo continues to grow throughout its lifespan until they dies whereas females stop growing in adulthood. Average males grow as tall as 2 meters (6.5ft) with the females stropping at about 1.2 meters (4ft). A large male weighs approximately 90kg (200 pounds) and the female 35kg (77 pounds)
With such a large difference in size between the sexes females are capable of running faster than the males reaching tops speeds of 65 km/h (40 mph)
At a leap a red kangaroo can reach a height of 1.8 meters (6ft) and at a distance of 7.5 meters (25ft)!
Males competing with one another for females will often lean onto their large tails and box each other using their hind legs.
Red kangaroos can live without any water as long as there is an abundance of fresh grass and other green plants to acquire the moisture from.
When walking the kangaroo will sometimes use its tail as "third leg" to help push its self forward.
