Where does the red kangaroo live?
The red kangaroo lives across the whole Australian continent, avoiding only the more fertile areas: southern Western Australia, the eastern and south-eastern coasts and the northern rainforests. It is found in most dry areas of the centre, in scrubland, grassland and desert. It prefers open plains where trees and bushes are rare, and lives in small bands called mobs.
What does the red kangaroo eat?
The red kangaroo primarily eats green vegetation, particularly fresh grasses and flowering plants: green grass makes up 75 to 95% of its diet, and it browses shrubs when preferred foods are scarce. A male can cover 8 to 9 m in one leap, and reach around 60 km/h. Where there is a lot of forage, these groups can number as many as 1,500 individuals. When it is very hot, the red kangaroo stays in the shade, moves less, pants, sweats and licks its forelimbs to cool down. It can even increase its panting and sweating to survive extreme temperatures. It has two muscular hind legs for jumping, and a strong tail that acts as a tripod when it stands upright.
Is the red kangaroo endangered?
No: the IUCN lists it as Least Concern. In 2023, over half a million were harvested across Australia. It competes with livestock and rabbits, is shot by farmers, and is often hit by vehicles. It is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest land mammal native to Australia and the largest living marsupial.
