ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



Young kangaroos seek 



BLACK SWAMP-WALLABY 

 efuge in tlie mother's pouch until one-third grown. This you 

 but rushed for the mother upon the slightest disturbane 



in the Darling Downs district from railway 

 carriages when one is travelling from Brisbane 

 to Sidney, or vice-versa. It is three feet in 

 height and its tail is two and one-half feet in 

 length. The Red Kangaroo. (Macropus rufus) 

 is probably the largest of the kangaroos. The 

 short, woolly fur is red in color in the male and 

 bluish grey in the female. When standing up- 

 right, practically on its hind toes, and resting 

 the weight of its body on the end portion of 

 the tail, it measures about six and one-half feet; 

 otherwise four to five and a half feet. 



Old males get very pugnacious and frequently 

 fight one another. They do so by scratching, if 

 possible, with their fore paws, and also by lean- 

 ing back and resting the weight of their body 

 on the extreme end of their tail, only about six 

 inches, and striking forward with the hind feet. 

 The claws are sharp and although they do not 

 often do much damage to each other, they can 

 easily rip up an unwary dog should one tackle 

 them. These animals live on the plain country 

 of New South Wales and southern Queensland, 

 generally remaining during the heat of the day 



under the shade of the trees that fringe the 

 plains. They can easily travel at the rate of 

 twenty miles an hour when pursued, and exceed 

 that speed when pressed. They cover about 

 twelve feet at a jump and can clear a fence 

 eight to ten feet high. Occasionally they are 

 pursued on the plains with motor cars, although 

 I hardly think that is a fair way to get them, as 

 they have no chance, unless they get into a belt 

 of timbered or rough country. However, the 

 sport is not destined to be very popular as 

 motoring over the plains at over twenty miles 

 an hour is usually a very bumpy experience. A 

 female kangaroo when hard pressed in flight if 

 she should be carrying a heavy young one, or 

 joey in her pouch, will take the young one out 

 and conceal it under a bush, coming back when 

 all danger is over, should she have a chance. 



The only safe way to hold a kangaroo is by 

 the tail, and it takes a strong man to hold one. 

 The young are born in the ordinary way, but in 

 a very immature state. They are about an inch 

 long, the fore feet are twice the size of the hind 

 feet and the tail very small. It is placed on 



