Kangaroos are marsupials (animals with pouches) that live in Australia and New Guinea. Most of them live on grassy plains and feed on plants. They move about in troops, springing along on their big, powerful hind legs and large feet. Their long tails help them to balance. There are five species of kangaroos. Red and grey are the largest ones. A red kangaroo may be taller and heavier than a man. Grey kangaroos can bounce at a speed of 40 kilometres per hour if chased. Wallaroos are smaller kind of kangaroo. A full-grown kangaroo stands about six feet tall. Its front legs are short, while the hind legs are very long. The powerful hind legs enable a kangaroo to take long jumps of 3 to 5 metres at a time. If a hunter or hunting dog chases a kangaroo, it can run very fast by leaping long distances. You will be amazed to know that a kangaroo can cover a distance of 7 to 9 metres in just one jump. When hunting dogs corner a kangaroo, it can seize a dog with its forelegs, and kill it with one swing of its hind legs.
The female kangaroo has a pouch in its belly in between the hind legs, in which it keeps its young ones till they grow up. When a baby kangaroo is born, it is a tiny, pink, mass of about 2.5 centimetres in length and about 1 gram in weight. An infant kangaroo needs the protection of its mother. It lives on its mother’s milk until it leaves the pouch at the age of 6 to 8 months. If the mother kangaroo finds her young one in danger, she lifts it in her mouth and places it inside the pouch in her belly. The life span of a kangaroo is about 6 to 8 years. The kangaroo is a mild animal, like sheep and goats. Like the hare, it cannot see any object in front of it, but its power of smell and hearing is very strong.