Eastern Gray Kangaroo

Eastern Gray Kangaroo

Eastern gray kangaroo - Macropus giganteus

Eastern gray kangaroo - Photo taken by Sklmsta

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Description

As you can guess from their name, The Eastern Gray Kangaroo is grayish in color. This can include a variety of different shades of it, even on the same one. Looking at the front of them you will see a long area of white that blends in very well. They are spectacular looking animals.

The females are about 100 pounds when fully grown and the males have about an additional 20 pounds to offer. The females are about 4 feet tall and the males have a full foot on them. They also have ears that are very long and fully erect on top of their heads. The small face is one that most people find to be adorable.

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Anatomy

Kangaroos have short and slender upper limbs but they can pack a punch to them. They use them for boxing – well that is the males do. They also use them for grabbing food and for digging. If you look closely you will see that they have claws on them which are very sharp.

It is the tail that is really the core of the anatomy for the Kangaroo. Without this powerful and large muscle they won’t be able to stand or to hop in the manner that they do. They can go a distance of about 30 feet with each leap that they make. They can also leap higher than 5 feet off the ground. They use very little energy to move this way and they can travel at a speed of around 30 miles per hour.

You will notice that they have very large legs and wide feet. The internal parts of them are like springs with lots of flexibility. That is why they are able to make their movements appear to be effortless. No other animal in the world has an anatomy that is structured like this.

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Evolution

There is a believe that the Eastern Gray Kangaroo has been around for millions of years. Yet we are missing the pieces that help us to connect them at that point in time to now. We don’t fully understand what all has gone on in history to provide us with them as they are now know. One thought is that they used to be more similar to possums but that hasn’t yet been confirmed.

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Behavior

The males are extremely aggressive towards each other due to the desire to be the leader of their group called a mob. They want to take over so that they can become the dominant one and able to mate with all the females that are in that group. That is a very important role that they all strive for.

Boxing battles often take place among them so that they can challenge the leader. They will fight with each other to build up their strength of when that moment comes. Changes in leadership occur all the time and that is part of how the genetic pool continues to be very strong for these animals.

The females behave very differently in the mob, taking the time to interact with each other and to develop strong relationships. The females that are related are very favorable towards each other. They don’t turn their backs on their offspring once they reach the age of maturity.

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Habitat and Distribution

Areas throughout Australia and Tasmania are where you will find the Eastern Gray Kangaroo. They look for areas that have moisture in them. That is why they find homes where they have lots of shade from the trees. In fact, you may not see very many of these Kangaroos at all. That is because they will stay in those cool areas during the day and then emerge at night.

They do come out to the open grasslands through to find food. They have a wide range that they do cover in order to make sure they are able to find plenty of food. When the food supplies start to run low in a given area the mob will move on to evaluate other locations. They do seem to be able to adapt very well to different areas.

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Diet and Feeding Habits

Finding enough to eat is a very important element of the life for an Eastern Gray Kangaroo. They will spend hours every single night either eating or looking for food. For the females it is even more important as they need to be able to produce milk for the young joeys to be able to consume for their own survival.

Some of the common foods that they eat include grass, trees, and shrubs. They really aren’t picky so they will take just about any opportunity out there to eat what they come across. They can end up depleting vegetation in an given area though because their sharp teeth cut so far down. They will then use flat teeth to grind it up before swallowing it – they don’t chew.

The food will later come back up in a process known as regurgitation. Then they will chew it more and swallow it again. Cud has to be produced by the Kangaroos in order for them to adequately be able to digest the food. They do need water, but they get so much of it from the foods they consume that it usually isn’t a big issue to have to go in search of it by itself.

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Reproduction

The females won’t mate if they don’t have their basic needs met. The males also won’t produce enough sperm. This is nature’s way of helping to balance out the population when it needs to. This can be a concern in some areas though where the numbers continue to drop and new offspring isn’t being created to replace them. The females do love caring for the joeys though so as long as conditions are right they will be a willing participant for mating.

An extremely small joey will go to the pouch and find a warm shelter as well as milk. As it starts to grow it will be peeking out of that shelter. In time when it is safe enough it will hop out to explore a bit. Should it feel in danger though it will quickly go back to the pouch for protection. At about 10 months of age it will leave the pouch for good.

Eastern Gray Kangaroo Predators

The only real predator to worry about in the wild for the Eastern Gray Kangaroo is the Dingo. These canines have a terrible reputation in the wild and they will do all they can for their own survival. Even though Kangaroos can move quickly a pack of Dingos often proves to be too much for them. Even if they injure or kill one of them they others move in for the kill.

Humans continue to make problems for these Kangaroos. The fact that they have been used as a source of meat for centuries by the Aborigines is seen as a way of life. They aren’t going to give that up in search of other options. Hunters are a huge problem because they want to kill these animals simply so they don’t have to share the land. Ironically, they take over the natural habitat and then want to control what can come into that space.

 

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