Western Grey Kangaroo 
Macropus fuliginosus

Photographed at Wellington Weir Perth

Kangaroos may seem common in WA but different kangaroo's or wallabies inhabit different areas of the state.  Sometimes you will be lucky to see them and sometimes you will only see the clues left behind.  With so many different species of macropods you can't just assume it was a Western Grey or a Western Brush Wallaby.

This is Roo Poo!

When you see this type of poo around in the sand, field or in the forest, you will know that a species of kangaroo has been there.  

If you want to get really nitty gritty you could examine some of the poo to find out what it was eating but we wont go into that.

This photograph was taken at Badgingarra National Park off Brand Hwy.

Although finding poo is a good sign, it is often not enough to identify your animal because some animal poo is very similar. There are over 40 different species of Kangaroos and Wallabies, so you need some more signs to narrow down which species is living there. 

Foot prints are really good to look for, they can help in identifying your animal.
Kangaroo tracks seem to look the same, but if you look closely you can see that there are some differences between them.

Kangaroo Tracks

Here you can see both the front feet where the kangaroo rests its weight while swinging its back legs forward and the tail drags through the middle.  
This not only tells us that it was a macropod or from the kangaroo family but that it was a large kangaroo due to the length of the hind feet and that it was walking slowly.  If a kangaroo is fleeing it will bound on its hind legs, its front legs wont touch the ground and its tail will be held out the back to balance the kangaroo and it may not touch the ground either. Also the track left in the sand will be shorter as it will bound on its toes more like we do when we run.  

So this kangaroo could have been enjoying the morning sun, having a quite nibble or graze, or maybe just casually returning to its favourite resting area.

Joey of a Western Grey kangaroo's hind foot

All the macropods feet are padded.  This allows them to grip the rocky surfaces especially when it has been raining.  This soft foot also protects the ground and small seedlings can pop back up after a heavy kangaroo has hopped on them.  A heavy hoofed animal breaks the young plant.

You can look at other signs as well, such as the environment you are in. If you are in the north of Western Australia or in semi arid areas you will probably find evidence of more Red Kangaroos and Euro's or Common Wallaroo's or in the south in woodlands, farmers fields and forests you are more likely to find Grey Kangaroos or the Common Wallaby. 

Upper Jaw

Here the last rear molars are coming through.  Like humans the older you get the more teeth you have and then you start to loose them.  The kangaroo will loose its pre-molars and then its first and second molars will fall out. 

The amount of teeth can show the age and health of the animal.

Sometimes you will see remains of animals that have lived in the area.  This is the skull of a Kangaroo. You can see those big front herbivore teeth.

Lower jaw 

Here is a Kangaroo skeleton photographed at the Western Australian Museum, unfortunately it didn't say which Kangaroo species it was but obviously one of the larger Red or Grey Kangaroo's.  (Ignore the Homosapien in the background)

Male Western Grey Kangaroo's measure approx 1.2m from the head and body, with a tail of 1.0m.   Females are approx .9m in length with a tail ..8m long.

Males weigh approx 54kg and females weigh approx 28kg

 What do they eat?  

Kangaroos graze on grasses and native plants so you might notice areas of tall grass eaten off. Some Kangaroos dig in the sand to eat roots and to find the cooler sand to lie in, so you might notice some depressions in the sand under shady bushes or rocks.

A favourite treat for kangaroo's is to munch on is Woollybush.

Photograpyed at Lake Joondalup Perth

A female kangaroo is called a doe or flyer, a male is called a buck or boomer and a youngster is called a joey.

Kangaroos often move in a group called a mob and you may come across a trail where they have crossed a path or roadway where you will see lots of footprints. 

Being a marsupial means that the joey is born in an incomplete stage and is unable to survive or complete its development without the females pouch.  Here the joey has its own teat (as an older out-of-the-pouch joey could still be snacking on another one), it will stay totally inside the warm moist pouch until it is lightly furred.  The female decides when the joey can come out and calls the joey back in with coughs and her hands guide it to the opening.  The joey always re-enters the pouch head first and flips around so its head is up in the pouch.  (They don't always land in the pouch when they are first leaving and entering the pouch, sadly this even kills some joeys as they land on their necks).

Watching baby animals can be very funny and watching joey's get the hang of using their big feet and strong legs is very funny.  They look like their legs have been wound-up and released dragging the body with them as the joey leaps and crashes where-ever the legs take it.  Stopping is not that easy either for a youngster! 

Habitat

Ellis Brooke Reserve in the Darling Range is home to many Western Grey Kangaroos.

In W.A the Western Grey Kangaroo lives in the south-west north to Shark Bay and east to the wheatbelt.

The Western Greys will live pretty well anywhere in this area.  They live close to housing, in farming areas and bushland.

These young Western Grey joeys have not long been out of their mothers pouch as she was hunted.  Along with many other volunteers I help raise these joeys at the Darling Range Wildlife Shelter.  They will return to the wild when they are older.

This is "Snickers" she is approx 14 months old and is a  Western Grey joey, she is small for her age. I had her for about 4 months as I had the yard space for her to get a good workout before she went on to a soft release sight.

Here is a Red Kangaroo and an albino Red kangaroo photographed at Whiteman Park Perth

Text;
"Tracks and Scats and Other Traces- A Field Guide to Australian Mammals" by Barbara Triggs
"A Field Guide to Mammals of Australia" by Peter Menkhorst; Frank Knight

All Content, written and graphical Copyright © Wildlife Education Services 2003.
 All photos Copyright © Rachel Martinovich 2003 unless otherwise mentioned. Contact us Wildlife Education Services 
 Please read our disclaimer.  Problems/comments/badlinks to the Webmaster.