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Red-Necked Wallaby

Place to admire: Australia

Scientific name: Macropus rufogriseus

IUCN-status: Least concern

Habitat

Red-Necked Wallabies belong to the marsupials. In wildlife, this species is found in eastern Australia, including Tasmania. Here it lives mainly in forests and grasslands.

Appearance

The Red-Necked Wallaby has gray-brown fur, with a white belly. The tail turns silver and has a black tip, as do the ears, legs, and muzzle.

Albino varieties of Red-Necked Wallaby also exist.

Diet

Red-Necked Wallabies are herbivores. Most of their diet consists of grasses and plants. Because of their elongated faces, they have enough jaw space for the large, flat teeth. They need these to chew their vegetarian meals.

Social behavior

Red-Necked Wallaby live solitary or in small groups. A group consists of 2 to 5 females and their young. A pair, meaning a male and a female, does not spend more than 24 hours together.

Natural behavior

The Red-Necked Wallaby are sometimes warm. In their natural habitat, temperatures can rise so high that even the Red-necked Wallaby has a hot feeling. By licking its hands and arms, it cools itself. When the wind blows over this wet fur, the Red-Necked Wallaby experiences this as cooling.

When a young comes into the world, it is small, helpless and undeveloped. The cub immediately crawls into its mother’s pouch. Here it will continue to develop. This usually takes a few months. Young wallabies are also called Joeys. Even after a Joey leaves the pouch, it often returns to the pouch when danger threatens.

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