Kangaroos

Kangaroos are one of Australia’s most recognisable animals. Australia has 4 kangaroo species—red, eastern grey, western grey and antilopine. The eastern grey is the most common species in Queensland.

The eastern grey kangaroo adapts to changed landscapes that still provide shelter, water and grass to eat. Golf courses, outer suburban parks, rural residential areas and farmland can all provide a habitat.

Without fear of being hunted or disturbed, eastern grey kangaroos have had little inclination to move out of their traditional habitats and territories. They now tolerate our presence and we tolerate theirs, often enjoying the sight of one of our largest native animals at close quarters.

When it comes to looking eye-to-eye at such a large marsupial, it is important to understand how it can behave. Watching kangaroos can teach you a lot about their individual behaviour and how they act within a group.

Behaviour

Understanding the mob mentality

Eastern grey kangaroos are social animals living in groups called mobs. Each mob has a number of breeding females and their young, and several adult males. Only one dominant male will breed with all the females. This male defends its breeding rights by fighting other males. The other adult males in the mob may also ‘spar’ with each other to establish their own position in the dominance hierarchy.

The dominant male watches over the females to see if they are ready to mate, and will sometimes follow one for days. Other males will also hang around the females and the dominant male will warn off these rivals if they get too close.

A dominant male kangaroo may assert his dominance by:

• walking slowly on all fours with its back arched to intimidate other males
• rubbing its chest from side to side on the ground
• grabbing onto grass tussocks and low shrubs with its forelimbs and rubbing its chest over them
• standing erect by propping itself up on its tail and hindfeet, and urinating
• fighting and sparring.

Sub-dominant males will acknowledge the dominant male's status by giving a short cough. If there is no cough-response, a fight may result. If you see a kangaroo behaving like this, move away.

Females with joeys (baby kangaroos) that are old enough to be out of the pouch can also become aggressive if they feel that the presence of a person is a possible threat to their young.

Individual behaviours

Wild animals should never be seen as having set patterns of behaviour that they follow blindly. Individual animals have their own 'personalities' and learn from their experiences.

If a kangaroo has been raised in captivity and released into the wild it may approach you demanding food by scratching and biting. It may even see you as another animal and start to kick and scratch as a form of 'play fighting' or to assert its dominance.

Kangaroos that are injured or sick can also become defensive if approached and may be dangerous. In these situations, a trained wildlife rehabilitator should be contacted rather than approaching the animal yourself. RSPCA Qld 1300 Animal (1300 264 625) can put you in touch with a rehabilitator.

Living with kangaroos

The following information can help to make living near kangaroos a safer and enjoyable experience.

Enjoy kangaroos from a distance—If you enter an area where kangaroos live, give them as much space as possible. If you see one, stay away from it and watch how it behaves. If it moves toward you, or shows signs of being aggressive, move away. Even if it is only looking for food or human contact, a kangaroo may still become aggressive. Don't act aggressively towards the kangaroo, as this will simply reinforce the idea that you are a threat.

Sometimes kangaroos move into backyards or onto private property to feed. Stop this by fencing and removing sources of food or water that attract kangaroos.

Get to know your local mob—By watching the kangaroos that live near you, you can learn to identify individuals by their appearance (e.g. size, sex, notches on their ears) and even give them names. You will also start to work out the relationships between individual kangaroos (e.g. who the dominant male is) and be able to follow the birth and growth of each new generation of joeys.

Feeding—The simple answer here is: don't feed. Feeding brings kangaroos close to people, creating potentially dangerous situations. Exposing them to an artificial diet may also cause health problems and create unnatural numbers of kangaroos.

Aggressive kangaroos—If you are approached by an aggressive kangaroo you should keep it at a safe distance so that it can't kick or scratch. For example, hold up a stick or a branch, or stay behind a fence or a tree. Move away from the animal as quickly as you can. Don’t turn your back on it and run—a large male can easily outrun you and kick at the same time. Turn side-on, protect the front of your body with your arms and keep your head as far away from the kangaroo as possible to minimise the risk of being scratched on the face.

If it is a large male with dominant behaviour, it may see you as a threat. Protect yourself and let the kangaroo know you are not a threat—give a short, deep cough, avoid eye contact and crouch down as you move away.

Females and smaller male kangaroos are less likely to be aggressive but may approach if they are used to being fed or have had a lot of human contact. Even though females are much smaller than males, they can scratch and kick and could pose a safety risk—particularly to small children.

As a last resort, if you can't escape an attacking kangaroo, roll up into a ball on the ground with your arm covering your neck and call for help. Try to roll or crawl away to a safe place.