Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus) Fact Sheet: Behavior & Ecology

(Croft 1981)

• Most active after dawn and before dusk
• Most of day spent resting and feeding; social behavior occupies small proportion of day
  • Average 43.5% of each day in food searching, grass cropping and chewing (Munn et al. 2010)

• Seek sites with shade and shelter; necessary for thermoregulation (Dawson & Denny 1969)
• No longer considered nomadic, but some individuals do travel great distances for unknown reasons (Tyndale-Biscoe 1995)
  • A male tagged at 2 years old had moved 300 km (186 mi) south 25 years later (Bailey & Best 1992)
  • A female moved 338 km (210 mi) in 15 weeks (Oliver 1986)
• Modern aerial studies indicate seasonal variations in amount of movement, from 14 to 97 km (about 9 to 60 mi) (Pople et al. 2007):
  • Shifts in distribution towards areas with better rainfall - many red kangaroos move over 50 km (31mi)
  • Distribution is patchy in drought years; more evenly spread in wet years

• No evidence of territories (Croft 1981)

General

• Small groups of 2-10 individuals; between 2 and 3 individuals is average
• Groups are impermanent and small (Croft 1981)
  • Larger groups appear at dense patches of food or water sources
• Groups sedentary when food available; travel more when food is scarce (Newsome 1975)
• Males usually found alone or in mixed-sex groups (Johnson 1983)
  • Associate with lactating females with pouch young or young-at-foot nearby - these females may soon breed
• Females with young often remain apart from larger groups (Lee & Cockburn 1985)

Hierarchy

•  Male dominance based on size (Lee & Cockburn 1985)

General

• Small groups of 2-10 individuals; between 2 and 3 individuals is average
• Groups are impermanent and small: (Croft 1981)
  • Larger groups appear at dense patches of food or water sources
• Groups sedentary when food available; travel more when food is scarce (Newsome 1975)
• Males usually found alone or in mixed-sex groups (Johnson 1983)
  • Associate with lactating females with pouch young or young-at-foot nearby - these females may soon breed
• Females with young often remain apart from larger groups (Lee & Cockburn 1985)

Hierarchy

•  Male dominance based on size (Lee & Cockburn 1985)

Aggression

•  Show competition for resting sites; also, male-male conflict (Croft 1981)
• Compared to many grazing ungulates, levels of aggression are low (Croft 1981)
• Young adult males engage in ritualized "boxing" (Tyndale Biscoe 2005)
  • Hold each other's shoulders
  • Supported by tail
  • Competitor rakes other kangaroo with feet
  • Alpha status determined in these bouts
• Alpha males display less fighting and related behaviors and more sexual behavior (Tyndale-Biscoe 1995)
  • If displaced, they live alone

Visual Display

• No complex displays known (Croft 1981) 
• Males show three kinds of threat behavior (Dawson 1995):
  • Upright posture, either regular posture or high-standing on tiptoes and tip of tail
  • Stiff-legged walking
  • Grass or bush pulling; bushes may be grappled in manner similar to fighting another male or male may thrust chest down against clump of grass and rub

Vocalization (Croft 1981)

•  Contact call between mother and young:
  • Staccato clicking
• Aggression
  • "Ha"
• Male in courtship
  • "Clucking"
• Alarm
  • Deep hisses and growls

Other Acoustic Communication (Rose et al. 2006)

•  Foot thumping is common to all macropods
  • One or both hind feet strike ground; audible thump created
  • Most commonly used during predator-prey interactions
  • Function of thumping not clear to researchers
    • May warn other kangaroos of danger
    • Might be signaling the predator
    • Both of the above

Olfaction/Scent Marking (Croft 1981)

•  Functions of olfactory cues
  • Mother-young recognition
  • Sexual recognition and detection of female's sexual condition
• Males asserting dominance may grab clumps of grass, pull clumps onto their chest against scent glands (Staker 2006)
• Frequent sniffing on resting sites of large fecal deposits
  • Sniffing animal doesn't leave own mark on site or vacate the site
• Males noted for strong-smelling, colored, glandular secretions on neck and chest

(Dawson & Taylor 1973)

• In a classic study, red kangaroos were trained to hop on a treadmill while oxygen consumption measured
  • At low speeds below 6 km/hr (3.7 mph) rely on pentapedal gait with tail serving as a "crutch"
    • With hind feet and tail on ground, place front feet on ground
    • Pull tail to body; hind limbs lift until only toes touch ground
    • Hind limbs swing forward together while kangaroo supports self with front limbs and tail
    • Lifts front limbs
    • Moves front limbs forward as cycle is repeated
    • Gait is used for foraging and grazing
    • This gait is energetically costly
  • At higher speeds, beginning at 6-7 km/hour (3.7-4.3 mph), use bipedal hopping with both hindlimbs moving together
  • At speeds over 18 km/hour, less energy is required for a kangaroo to hop than for a four-legged animal to run
  • The Achilles tendon and ligaments store and return mechanical energy with each hop (Biewener & Baudinette 1998)
• Sustained speed possible at 40 km/hour (25 mi/hour); short bursts of 50-65 km/hr (31-40 mph)
• Good swimmers; "dog-paddle" by alternating kicks of hind limbs (Dawson 1995)
  • Contrary to widespread belief, kangaroos can move their hind limbs independently (while swimming and when moving backwards) (Staker 2006)
• A resting posture occasionally used: lie on back as if sunbathing, with legs held in mid air (Staker 2006)
• Foot thumping may serve to confuse predators and also may warn other kangaroos of danger, but exact function of this common behavior is not yet known (Rose et al 2006)
• Maximum stride length thought to be similar to gray kangaroos (about 6 m) (Bennet 1987)
  • Forthcoming studies using drone cameras may offer more accurate estimates (Lauren Thornton, personal communication 2024)

Predators of adult kangaroos

• Only dingos and humans (Lee & Cockburn 1985)
  • Dingos were introduced between 3,500 and 12,000 years ago by humans and are significant predators (Savolainen et al. 2004)
  • Red kangaroos and common wallaroos were traditional favored meat of natives of Flinders Range in South Australia (Tunbridge 1988, 1991)
  • In Arnhem Land in far northern Australia, traditional diet of Gunwingu depended on kangaroos and wallabies (Dawson 1995)

Predators of young kangaroos

• Foxes, feral cats, and several raptors, including wedge-tailed eagles

Other notes on kangaroo predators

• Ratio in Australia of carnivores-to-herbivores is low compared to North America (Calaby 1971)
• Possible Pleistocene predators, especially on extinct giant kangaroos (Dawson 1995; Tyndale-Biscoe 1995):
• A large marsupial lion (Thylacoleo carnifex)
• A giant Komodo dragon Megalania prisca, up to 5 m (16 ft) in length
• Pythons, up to 6 m (20 ft)

Competitors

• Studies of grazing competition between sheep and kangaroos (Edwards et al. 1996):
• Kangaroo numbers increased in study area during semi-drought when neighboring kangaroos arrived
• Some competition with sheep noted, but no decline in wool production
• During drier periods, kangaroos and sheep diets had less in common than when pastures were wetter

Shade trees

• Prefer to rest under Casuarina cristata shade trees during hot summer months (Croft 1981)

Play

•  Mother and young engage in grooming and social play (Dawson 1995)
  • Play fighting behavior is most common

Red kangaroos seek shade during the heat of the day.

Image credit: © San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. All rights reserved.

Bailey & Best (1992)
Biewener & Baudinette (1998)
Calaby (1971)
Croft (1981)
Donelan et al. (2002)
Dawson (1995)
Dawson & Denny (1969)
Edwards et al. (1996)
Johnson (1983)
Lee & Cockburn (1985)
Newsome (1975)
Oliver (1986)
Pople et al. (2007)
Rose et al. (2006)
Savolainen et al. (2004)
Staker (2006)
Tunbridge (1988, 1991)
Tyndale-Biscoe (2005)