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Name || Eastern grey kangaroo

Scientific Name || Macropus giganteus

Conservation Status || Least concern

Habitat || Eastern Australian scrub and woodlands

Unique Features || Kangaroos are famous for the pouches in which their babies grow and develop. Social Behaviour || Kangaroos live in large family groups known as mobs. A mob may consist of one male, a few females and their offspring. Mobs may join together to form larger groups. Diet || Kangaroos are browsing animals, feeding on grass and other vegetation. They happily graze alongside sheep or cattle, and farmers consider them pests. Reproduction || Babies are born after only 38 days gestation. Measuring less than 2.5cm long, the baby crawls into its mothers pouch and anchors itself to one of her teats. It will remain there for about eight months until it is ready to emerge. Though it can now move around independently, it will return to its mothers pouch for a further six months until it is fully weaned. Life Cycle || Kangaroos reach maturity at around two years of age, and can live for up to 20 years. Relatives || Most closely related to the other kangaroo species, the kangaroo is also related to the other macropods, and more distantly to the other marsupial mammals. Interesting Facts : Kangaroos have been known to leap up to 13.5 metres in one bound. They can travel for extended periods at around 20km per hour, but can move at up to 70 km per hour when they need to. Their Latin name (Macropodidae) means large feet. Males can reach over 60 kg and can stand up to 2m tall! Females can rear three joeys at one time, one as a foetus, one inside the pouch and one outside the pouch. Breeding Programme || Our kangaroos are very successful breeders. Environmental Conditions || The main threat to the survival of the kangaroo is man. They are seen as a pest by farmers throughout their natural range. At Wellington Zoo || We have eight kangaroos at the Zoo. Rooby came here in 1998 from Taronga Zoo and is the mother of most of our kangaroos including a joey, first seen out of the pouch in December 2001.

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