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Below is some information about the residents of the Australian realm at The Montgomery Zoo. Come visit us to find out more.
RED KANGAROO Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus) is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest mammal native to Australia, and the largest surviving marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, avoiding only the more fertile areas in the south, the east coast, and the northern rainforests.This species is a very large kangaroo with short, red-brown fur, fading to pale buff below and on the limbs. It has long, pointed ears and a squared-off muzzle. Females are smaller than males and are blue-grey with a brown tinge, pale grey below, although arid zone females are colored more like males. It has two forelimbs with small claws, two muscular hind-limbs, which are used for jumping, and a strong tail which is often used to create a tripod when standing upright. The Red Kangaroo's legs work much like a rubber band. The males can leap over 9 meters (30 ft) in one leap. Males grow up to a body length of 1.4 meters (4 ft 7 in) long and weigh up to 85 kilograms (190 lb). Females reach a body length of up to 1.1 meters (3 ft 7 in) long and weigh up to 35 kilograms (77 lb). Tails can be from 0.9 to 1 meter (3.0–3.3 ft) long. The average Red Kangaroo stands approximately 1.5 meters (4 ft 11 in) tall. Accounts of sizes greater than this are not uncommon, with some large males reportedly reaching approximately 2 meters (6 ft 7 in). The Red Kangaroo maintains its internal temperature at a point of homeostasis about 36 °C (97 °F) using a variety of physical, physiological, and behavioral adaptations. These include having an insulating layer of fur, being less active and staying in the shade when temperatures are high, panting, sweating, and licking its forelimbs. The Red Kangaroo's range of vision is approximately 300°, due to the position of its eyes. The Red Kangaroo ranges throughout central Australia. Its range encompasses scrubland, grassland, and desert habitats. It prefers open grassland and normally avoids areas with many trees and shade. The Red Kangaroo prefers to eat grasses. It also includes significant amounts of shrubs in its diet. It can go long periods of time without water, as long as it has access to green plants, since it has the ability to take moisture out of plants. At times, red kangaroos congregate in large numbers; in areas with much forage, these groups can number as much as 1,500 individuals. Red kangaroos are mostly crepuscular and nocturnal, resting in the shade during the day. However, they sometimes move about during the day. Most of their active period is spent in grazing. Like most kangaroo species, they are mostly sedentary, staying within a relatively well-defined home range. However, great environmental changes can cause them to travel far. The Red Kangaroo is too big to be subject to significant non-human predation. They can use their robust legs and clawed feet to defend themselves from attackers with kicks and blows. However, dingoes and eagles will kill and eat joeys. Joeys are thus protected in their mother's pouch. The Red Kangaroo did have major predators that are now extinct. The Thylacine, considered by palaeontologists to have once been a major natural predator of the kangaroo, is now extinct. Other extinct predators included the Marsupial Lion, Megalania, and the Wonambi. The Red Kangaroo breeds all year round. The females have the unusual ability to delay birth of their baby until their previous Joey has left the pouch. This is called embryonic diapause. The Red Kangaroo has the typical reproductive system of a kangaroo. The neonate emerges after only 33 days. Usually only one young is born at a time. It is blind, hairless, and only a few centimeters long. Its hind legs are mere stumps; it instead uses its more developed forelegs to climb its way through the thick fur on its mother's abdomen into the pouch, which takes about three to five minutes. Once in the pouch, it fastens onto one of the two teats and starts to feed. Almost immediately, the mother's sexual cycle starts again. Another egg descends into the uterus and she becomes sexually receptive. Then, if she mates and a second egg is fertilized, its development is temporarily halted. Meanwhile, the neonate in the pouch grows rapidly. After ca. 190 days, the baby (called a joey) is sufficiently large and developed to make its full emergence out of the pouch, after sticking its head out for a few weeks until it eventually feels safe enough to fully emerge. From then on, it spends increasing time in the outside world and eventually, after ca. 235 days, it leaves the pouch for the last time. The young Joey will permanently leave the pouch at around 235 days old, but will continue to suckle until it reaches 12 months of age. A doe may reproduce as early as 18 months of age and as late as five years during drought, but normally she is two and a half before she begins to breed. The female kangaroo is usually permanently pregnant, except on the day she gives birth; however, she has the ability to freeze the development of an embryo until the previous joey is able to leave the pouch. This is known as diapause, and will occur in times of drought and in areas with poor food sources. The composition of the milk produced by the mother varies according to the needs of the joey. In addition, the mother is able to produce two different kinds of milk simultaneously for the newborn and the older joey still in the pouch. The Red Kangaroo can be found in the Australian realm of the Montgomery Zoo. WALLABY
Wallabies are not a distinct biological group. Nevertheless they fall into several broad categories. Typical wallabies of the Macropus genus, like the Agile Wallaby (Macropus agilis), and the Red-necked Wallaby (Macropus rufogriseus) are most closely related to the kangaroos and wallaroos and, size aside, look very similar. These are the ones most frequently seen, particularly in the southern states. WARTHOG
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Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus) is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest mammal native to Australia, and the largest surviving marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, avoiding only the more fertile areas in the south, the east coast, and the northern rainforests.
A wallaby is any of about thirty species of macropod (Family Macropodidae). It is an informal designation generally used for any macropod that is smaller than a kangaroo or wallaroo that has not been given some other name.
The Warthog or Common Warthog (Phacochoerus africanus, "African Lens-Pig") is a wild member of the pig family that lives in Africa.








