Kangaroo Habitat
Some Interesting Facts about Kangaroo Habitat
The kangaroo habitat can be found all over every part of Australia. This animal is included in the Macropodidae family which has the meaning of large foot and is categorized as a marsupial. Kangaroo habitat and Australia go hand in hand. You almost cannot think of one without the other. They are not farmed by Australians but some people do shoot them for sport and meat as well as to protect their cattle and sheep. The kangaroo represents Australia as a national symbol and plays an important role in cultural references.
The kangaroo habitat is filled with four common species including the Red Kangaroo, Eastern Grey Kangaroo, Western Grey Kangaroo and the Antilopine Kangaroo. In addition to these, there are approximately 50 smaller macropods that are close to the kangaroo family. Kangaroos have very big, extremely strong hind legs and quite large feet used for leaping. It also displays a muscular tail that it uses for balance and a smaller size head than one would think should be much bigger for its body. Kangaroos can hop at a speed of 13 to 16 mph on average but can reach 44 mph which allows them to travel long distances looking for water and food.
Different kangaroos have different diets but they are all herbivores. Some of them eat varieties of grass, other prefer shrubs and some eat in the day while others find themselves grazing at night. They have very special teeth that allow them to eat grass close to the ground and their molars actually fall out of their mouth from the silica in the grass but then they just miraculously grow new ones back.
Most of kangaroo predators are now sadly extinct including the thylacine, megalania, marsupial lion and wonambi. Species now like the dingo, foxes and feral cats that roam through Australia, are now the ones that pose a threat. Kangaroos are fantastic swimmers though and will usually use water to escape their prey. If the kangaroo is provoked it will use its forepaws to drown the attacker in the water.
The kangaroo habitat is traditionally woods and bushland, although grassland, forests, mallee scrubs, coastal heathland and scrubland are also home to them. They can adapt to a range of temperatures including sub-tropical and sub-alpine regions.
Scrublands are very popular for kangaroo habitat because they are locations that are a mixture of hot and dry in the summer months but ever quite become a desert which would result in loss of food due to the moist, cooler winters. Plants lie dormant here in summer and bloom in the autumn and grow with the winter’s rain. The Eucalyptus tree grows in abundance in the Australian Scrubland.
Heathlands are also a great kangaroo habitat due to the great variety of vegetation. It is essentially a field full of dwarf-shrub that grows in humid and sub-humid areas. Heath vegetation is very rich and is ideal for kangaroos to feed on.
Mallee scrubs develop themselves in poor sandy soil where there is little rainfall. The vegetation is attracted to the Eucalyptus tree, the kangaroo’s favorite tree.
There is plenty of bushland in Australia for the kangaroo habitat. This area is wooded, has dry soil and thin woody shrubs in addition also to many Eucalyptus trees.
You almost cannot mention Australia without giving honorable mention to the kangaroo and vice versa. The two are almost one united meaning. The weather and soil conditions make the ideal land for them to live. Virtually anywhere you look in Australia, you can find kangaroo habitat.