Red kangaroo. The lifestyle and habitat of the red kangaroo. Large red kangaroo Here are the main differences
The large red kangaroo is the largest of its kind. This beast lives throughout the continent, with the exception of the fertile lands of the regions in the south, the east coast, the western desert regions and tropical forests in the north.
Kangaroos can go without water for a long time, because of the arid climate. They feed on plant foods that grow on natural pastures. The main diet includes herbs, cereals and flowering plants.
In winter, the climate is more comfortable for kangaroos, they can safely jump around their territory. Males arrange demonstration fights for females. Cubs frolic carelessly, although the first year of their life is very difficult. The enemy of the kangaroo does not sleep and at any moment can overtake them by surprise. This enemy is the Dingo dog. They pose a danger not only to kangaroos, but also to other inhabitants of the savannah. This is not a pet.
Dingo needs to overtake kangaroos, because these marsupial giants are very fast. They can develop incredible speed, namely up to 65 kilometers per hour, strong hind legs help them with this. One energetic jump of a kangaroo can be more than nine meters.
With the onset of summer, it becomes much more difficult for large red kangaroos to live. The fact is that the temperature in Australia at this time of the year rises to + 40C, while there are very few trees on a huge plot. From early morning, kangaroos go in search of food, they have very little time, because after a while the desert will turn into real hell. When the sun bakes especially hard, these animals hide in the shade, but this is extremely small. Fleeing from overheating and therefore from death, kangaroos copiously cover their front paws with saliva, as arteries pass there. By doing this, they cool their body temperature.
Female kangaroos give birth to a tiny baby only two centimeters long. The baby is not born in a pouch. It emerges from the womb and begins its long journey towards the pouch. In time, it takes him about three minutes. A kangaroo clings to its mother's fur with its front paws. Its hind limbs are not yet developed, and in general the cub is still deaf, blind and bald. After arriving in the bag, the baby clings to one of the mother's nipples, and she has four of them. Milk is secreted by the action of a special muscle. The nipples change shape - they grow together with the cub, in each nipple the milk is different in composition and corresponds to the age of the cub. In total, a female kangaroo can simultaneously feed up to four cubs, despite the fact that twins are extremely rare for this species of animal.
The next two and a half months, the kangaroo will be formed in the bag. After this period, the baby jumps out of the bag and returns to the mother in case of danger and fatigue. When the cub reaches too large a kangaroo in the right to drive him out of the bag, this usually happens at the age of eight months. After that, the female can immediately give birth to the next baby. Also, the kangaroo has the ability to stop the development of the embryo in the uterus. This happens if the bag is occupied or if there are unfavorable conditions for breeding. The pocket is released and the pregnancy continues to develop.
Male large red kangaroos are much larger than females. Their body length reaches 1.4 meters and weighs 85 kilograms. But the growth of females is only 1.1 meters and weighs 35 kilograms.
Recently, scientists have discovered a quality in kangaroos that puts them on a par with primates. It turned out that they use their upper limbs with different loads. In science, there is a term "predominant hand" - this is a sign that appeared due to the unequal development of motor skills between the upper limbs. The evolutionary reason for its appearance has not been precisely established. According to the most common theory, this was the result of the division of labor between the hemispheres of the brain. The same hemisphere is responsible for the work of the speech and motor centers (in most people, the left), which leads to the predominance of right-handers.
By observing kangaroos, the researchers noticed that a large number of animals use their left paw for plucking branches, washing and other basic actions. This discovery casts doubt on the theory of evolutionary development of the "predominant hand" in primates: apparently, it is not only a matter of the division of labor by the hemispheres of the brain.
Red kangaroo (lat. Macropus rufus) is the undisputed symbol of Australia. It is the largest representative of the Marsupial order (Marsupialia) and the Kangaroo family (Macropodidae) on our planet.
It is perfectly adapted to life in the savannahs of the Australian continent dried up by the hot sun. Without a true placenta, this mammal cannot bear its cubs for a long time, therefore, until a certain age, they develop in a special deep skin fold on the mother's abdomen, which is commonly called a bag.
Behavior
In southern Australia, the red kangaroo lives mainly in barren lands overgrown with halophytes (plants that grow on saline soils) and rare acacia bushes.
Further north, internal plains begin with a predominance of dry steppes, savannahs with eucalyptus woodlands and thickets of dwarf acacia. In the center of the continent lie deserts with rare thorny bushes. In these deserts, kangaroos feel great, overcoming tens of kilometers during the day in search of plant food.
Their number in a given territory depends entirely on the availability of food at the moment. At the same time, fertile areas of the east coast rich in plant food and tropical forests in the north of this marsupial mammal do not attract at all.
The red kangaroo, despite its impressive size, has a rather peaceful character.
In the rainy season, animals roam in small groups of no more than 10 individuals. They usually consist of one male and several females with cubs.
Having matured, young kangaroos stray into new groups, and old people live out their lives on their own. When the rainy season ends and food becomes scarce, the animals gather in large herds and all together go in search of new pastures and watering places. They are able to do without water for several days, and smelling a source underground, they deftly dig holes up to 1 m deep.
During the day, kangaroos rest, but do not sleep, but carefully doze, listening to the slightest rustle. When the heat subsides a little, they begin to graze, devoting this activity usually 8-10 hours a day. They graze mainly at night, gathering in large herds to make it easier to fight off a possible attack of predators. They are often attacked by wild dingo dogs.
Having been attacked by them, kangaroos use an original method of protection, rushing to the nearest watering hole. Running into the water, they try to drown their angry enemies.
The basis of the diet is made up of various herbs and foliage of shrubs. Females try to choose food with a high protein content, while males are generally unpretentious in food. Each portion of marsupial food is thoroughly chewed using 16 molars, which are updated 4 times during life. Red kangaroo incisors are used to bite grass. Their stomach is very capacious. The cells of its inner lining secrete a special mucus in which bacteria live that can easily break down cellulose.
The hind limbs of a kangaroo always move in sync. To maintain balance during leisurely movement, the animal always leans on its front paws and tail. Usually it moves with the help of 2-meter jumps at a speed of up to 20 km / h. In case of danger, it develops a speed of up to 40 km / h, making giant jumps up to 9 m in length and 3 m in height.
reproduction
In the presence of favorable conditions, kangaroos breed all year round. In the fight for the female, the males arrange boxing fights among themselves, stabbing the enemy with their front paws until he leaves the place of the fight in disgrace. Sometimes powerful blows of the hind legs are also involved, which can cause serious injuries.
A fertilized egg develops in the uterus for 33 days, after which an underdeveloped cub 2.5-3 cm long and weighing about 1 g is born. nipples.
After 110 days, the baby is covered with wool, and after another month, for the first time in his life, he looks out of the bag. On the 200th day, he makes the first exit from the mother's bag, but at the slightest danger they return back. At the age of 8 months, the offspring reaches a weight of 2-4 kg and already spends most of the time outside, constantly refreshed by mother's milk. The grown cub enjoys playing with his mother, imitating his future fights.
Description
Adult males of the red kangaroo are almost 2 times larger than females. Males with a height of 1.6 m weigh about 66 kg, and females with a height of 1 m rarely exceed 30 kg. Occasionally there are especially large individuals up to 2 m high.
The hind legs are well developed and adapted for locomotion in long jumps, sometimes used as deadly weapons. Relatively small five-fingered front paws are armed with claws, which are used in fights, for brushing wool and grasping food.
The fur is very thick. In males, it is painted in a bright reddish-red color, and in females in gray-blue. The long muscular tail serves as a balancer during jumps and additional support when resting. The nose is broadly bare like a dog. Black, brown or white marks are clearly visible near the nostrils. The shape and size of the ears gives them a resemblance to horse ears.
Fangs are absent. There are three pairs of constantly growing incisors in the upper jaw, and one pair in the lower.
Red kangaroos live in the wild for an average of 6-8 years, in captivity with good care they live up to 20 years. Locals willingly hunt them for meat and skins. The population is currently about 10 million individuals.
The large red, or gigantic red, kangaroo is the largest representative of the order of modern marsupial mammals. Animals live throughout Australia, except for the western regions, some areas in the south of the continent, the east coast and a small zone of tropical forests in the north.
Only forward!
Kangaroos are the only large animals that move by jumping. Moreover, when moving on the ground, they use both hind legs at the same time, and while swimming - in turn. The animal does not know how to move backwards at all. This is probably why the kangaroo is depicted on the coat of arms of the state under the motto "Australia always goes only forward!".
Kangaroos cannot be called notorious fighters, however, if it comes to a serious fight, then the fight begins with threatening poses, and ends with powerful blows of the hind legs to the stomach. At the same time, they skillfully use their powerful tail - it acts as an additional support during the adoption of a vertical stance. A long tail and powerful hind legs allow the kangaroo to jump two to three meters of hedges, and in case of danger, to reach speeds of 45 to 55 km/h, sometimes up to 65 km/h.
Fitting Skills
Kangaroos live in small groups and lead a predominantly twilight lifestyle. Being herbivores, animals prefer savannas with dense vegetation. In case of a shortage of succulent grasses, they switch to other foods (tree bark, dry and hard grass, worms and insects). Kangaroos calmly survive a severe drought, as they can do without water for several days.
Kangaroos are very well adapted to the surrounding reality. To communicate with each other, animals use a number of different sounds: hissing, sneezing, clicking, etc.
Caring for offspring
Kangaroo cubs are born prematurely (weighing no more than 1 g and 2 cm long) and for quite a long time grow and develop in the mother's pouch. Having been born, the cub immediately crawls into the mother's bag and sticks to one of the four nipples. Each nipple produces its own type of milk, which depends on the age of the kangaroo. Moreover, if there are cubs of different ages, a mother can have two types of milk at the same time. The baby finally leaves the bag, only reaching the age of 8 months. Very often, at the moment of danger, the kangaroo takes the cub out of the bag, hides it in a secluded place and takes the predator away from its offspring. Having run away from the chase, mom returns to the kangaroo and puts it back in the bag.
albino kangaroos
The appearance of albinos is the result of a genetic mutation. In the wild, such animals have to face certain difficulties due to their unusual color, and they rarely survive. A small number of individuals can be found in various zoos.
You should know it
- International scientific name: macropus rufus.
- Guard status: causing the least concern.
- Characteristic: The kangaroo differs from most animals: its hind limbs and tail are disproportionately more massive and more powerful than the front ones. The small head, narrow shoulders and short forelegs indicate poor upper body development. The mass of adult males reaches 80 kg, and the body length reaches 1.4 m; females are somewhat smaller.
- It is interesting: in the wild, kangaroos have an average lifespan of 6 years, while in captivity, some individuals can live 25 years or more.
The gigantic red kangaroo (Macropus rufus) is today the largest marsupial animal. Kangaroos grow almost throughout their lives and reach a length of about 2.5 m from the tip of the tail to the tip of the nose. While males can reach a weight of 85 kg, females are much smaller - their weight is 35 kg.
BREAK FOR THE DIGESTION PROCESS
The main occupation of the red giants is grazing and rest. In the early hours of the morning they fill the fore-stomach so that during the rest period of the day they have enough time and food to digest. The vegetable food of bush-covered lands is tough and difficult to digest, so mother kangaroos are constantly looking for tender, soft shoots for their cubs. The cubs lick the saliva from the mother's mouth in order to get important microorganisms along with it, without which they will not be able to digest solid plant food. These microorganisms are indispensable partners in symbiosis in mature animals. Around noon, grooming and digging of so-called burrows begin, where the animals can cool off. Kangaroos usually rest in the early afternoon hours, and in the cooler season they can take a rest break between midnight and predawn twilight.
NOT ONLY RED FUR
The gigantic red kangaroo lives almost throughout the central part, or rather, where the annual rainfall does not exceed 500 mm.
The coloration of males in most cases is the color of rust or dark brown, and during estrus, the red color comes out more clearly in some places. At this time, in males, the skin glands produce a particularly large amount of red secretion, which they distribute with their front paws throughout the body. Females, on the other hand, are smoky blue. But in both sexes, the color varies between red and gray-bluish, which makes it difficult to distinguish between females and immature males. The color, or rather its variants, depends on the habitat: in Eastern and Southern Australia, the shades are more diverse, in North-Western Australia, on the contrary, the red color dominates in both sexes.
LEGS FOR JUMPS AND BATTLE
The gigantic red kangaroo uses the tail as a fifth leg: since the weak front legs cannot hold the body, the tail creates a counterbalance to the center of gravity that is strongly shifted forward. And yet, red giants are fast and hardy animals that can reach speeds of 70 km / h. They succeed in this thanks to the characteristic way of moving forward by jumping. Colossal strength allows the kangaroo to make three-meter jumps from a place, and at full "run" their length reaches 9 m. Such records are possible due to the special structure of the hind legs. The Achilles tendons of red giants function like steel springs when jumping: when they collide with the soil, they accumulate kinetic energy and give it back when pushed. Thus, there is less loss due to friction than running animals of similar size.
BOXING AGAINST DINGO AND RELATIVES
The main weapon of animals, along with a powerful tail, is the fourth finger, equipped with a very large and sharp nail plate. If the dingo - the main enemy of the kangaroo - drove the animal into a trap, then the kangaroo straightens up to its full height and boxes first with its front legs. But suddenly he leans only on the tail and with his hind legs strikes at the lower part of the opponent's torso. In this case, a sharp nail plate can rip open the abdominal wall and inflict a mortal wound.
Along with the dingo, the red giants have to be wary of their own relatives. First of all, fierce fights for sites take place between full-grown males. With the help of directed “punches”, opponents try to push each other out of the area. In the same way, subordination is established within the group. Young males follow such fights with great interest and at first jokingly imitate adults. The first battle is already important, otherwise you will not take a good place in the hierarchy. Males lower in the hierarchy have the opportunity to mate only when the dominant male is not vigilant enough.
LONG WAY TO THE BAG
Kangaroos can mate all year round. Pregnancy lasts four to five weeks. When the embryo is ready to move into the pouch, it is about the same size as a cockchafer. An hour before, the mother licks her pouch clean, then she lies on her back. In this case, the embryo moves towards the bag with snake-like movements. This path he must master alone. Absolutely blind, only with the help of the front legs and guided by the sense of smell, within three to five minutes gets to the goal. Arriving in the bag, the cub sticks to one of the four nipples. It swells so much that it fills the entire oral cavity of the cub. Therefore, with sharp jumps of the mother, the cub cannot tear itself away from it.
After three months, the baby separates from the nipple, as he is already able to find it again on his own. At first, milk is not very rich in fats, over time, their concentration increases. Six months later, the baby dares to stick out of the bag. At this time, the mother must teach the young kangaroo a lot, for example, in response to special calls, immediately return to her shelter.
Constantly pregnant
Kangaroos have an unusual breeding strategy. Already at the time when one young animal is growing up in a pouch, another nestled in the uterus. However, its growth stops at about 100 cells. This embryo is a reserve in case the baby in the pouch does not survive. If the baby in the pouch dies, the embryo begins to develop in the uterus. If the development of the baby in the bag proceeds normally, the "reserve embryo" dies off after a few months. But it can start to develop, and quite normally, as soon as the first cub leaves the pouch.
At this time, the mother can be fertilized again, and then a new reserve embryo appears. If high temperatures prevail for weeks and months and the ground dries out, the female kangaroo interrupts the development of the cub in the pouch to ensure her own survival. If enough fresh food is not available, females are not ready to conceive.
A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF
Kangaroo gigantic red ( Macropus rufus)
Class Mammals.
Detachment of two-crested marsupials.
Family of kangaroos.
Distribution: Inland Australia.
Body length with head: males - 95-140 cm, females - 75-110 cm.
Height at the withers: over 1 m.
Weight: males - 22-85 kg, females -17-35 kg.
Food: herbs, herbaceous plants, foliage and bark.
Sexual maturity: males - from 2 years, females - from 15-20 months.
Duration of pregnancy: about 33 days.
Duration of carrying in a bag: about 235 days.
Number of cubs: 1.
Lifespan: up to 20 years.
area
Distributed throughout the continent of Australia, with the exception of fertile areas in the south, the east coast and tropical forests in the north.
Appearance
Large red kangaroo female
Lifestyle and nutrition
Big red kangaroo
They feed on grasses of the steppes and semi-deserts.
Pregnancy and offspring
As it should be with marsupials, a female kangaroo gives birth to a tiny cub no more than 1 g in weight and 2 cm in length! However, this baby immediately grabs the wool in the mother's stomach and crawls into the bag himself. Here he eagerly grabs one of the four nipples with his mouth and literally sticks to it for the next 2.5 months. Gradually, the cub grows, develops, opens its eyes, becomes covered with fur. Then he begins to make short sorties out of the bag, immediately jumping back at the slightest rustle. A kangaroo leaves its mother's pouch at the age of 8 months. And immediately the mother gives birth to the next baby, who sneaks into the bag - to the other nipple. Surprisingly, from this point on, the female produces two types of milk: more fat for feeding the older one and less fat for the newborn.
Lifespan
Approximately 18-22 years old
Notes
Links
- Australian hermits (Russian) Article in the magazine "Around the World"
- (English)
- Article in the magazine "Disney Encyclopedia" No. 3 "Planet Earth"
Categories:
- Animals alphabetically
- Species out of danger
- Mammals of Australia
- Animals described in 1822
- Kangaroo
- Endemics of Australia
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