Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus) Fact Sheet: Population & Conservation Status

Population estimates

• 2017: approximately 5.8 million individuals (State of Queensland 2018)
• In 1981, this species was most abundant of all kangaroos (Dawson 1995)
  • 8.4 million estimated

Commercial harvest quotas

• Number of red kangaroos killed under commercial harvest quotas in Australia (Commonwealth of Australia 2007):
  • 1984: 605,630
  • 1990: 1,249,724
  • 2000: 1,173,242

IUCN Status

• Least Concern (2015 assessment) (Ellis et al. 2016)
  • Wide distribution
  • Abundant
  • Management plans in place; populations managed by government biologists
  • Occurs in several protected areas
  • Lack of major threats
  • Stable population
• For management (Pople & Grigg 1998)
  • Sustainable harvests for meat and skins allowed (Kelly 2005)
    • In New South Wales, managed under Kangaroo Management Program of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act of 1999
    • 60-70% of kangaroos harvested are for pet meat
    • Skin harvests operate only in Queensland
  • Outside harvest areas, kangaroos can be culled under pest destruction permits
• Australian Mammal Society recommendations (AMS 2011)
  • Against "the implementation of measures to bring about significant further reductions in kangaroo numbers in the sheep rangelands"
  • Advocates more carefully executed, long-term research to examine ecological and economic effects of kangaroo reductions

CITES Status

• Not listed (UNEP 2019)

U.S. Endangered Species Act

• Previously listed as "Threatened" in 1974
  • U.S. Department of Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service listed red kangaroo, preventing the importation of skins (USFWS 2011)
• 1995: USFWS delisted red kangaroos and once again allowed its skins to be imported into the U.S. (Nowak 1999)

• Dingo predation
• Limits kangaroo abundance in areas where dingos are not controlled (Ellis et al. 2008)
• Humans' lack of knowledge of arid land ecosystems and good land use practices (Dawson 1995)
• Urbanization, especially road building, adversely impacts kangaroos (Ramp 2010)
  • Kangaroos attracted to roadside habitats; local extinctions may result
  • Red kangaroos are more susceptible than greys to being hit by a vehicle
    • Red kangaroos tend to take flight at the first sign of danger
    • Grey kangaroos more often simply remain vigilant while in cover
  • Various solutions proposed for reducing fatalities:
    • Repellent sounds generated by vehicles–but studies suggest these are not effective
    • Physical structures to block kangaroos from roads in kangaroo hotspots
    • Wildlife warning reflectors widely used are not effective

Red kangaroos are commercially harvested in Australia.

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

Commonwealth of Australia (2007)
Dawson (1995)
Ellis et al. (2008)
FWS (2011)
Hacker & McLeod (2003)
Kelly (2005)
Nowak (1999)
Pople et al. (2007)
Pople & Grigg (1998)
Ramp (2010)