Five facts about kangaroos

1. Kangaroos are mainly active at night 

There are about 45 species of kangaroos and wallabies. The animals are mainly active at night and early in the morning. A male of the largest kangaroo species, the red kangaroo, can grow up to 2 metres long and weigh 90 kilos. That can be quite scary at night! 

2. Kangaroos live in family groups 

The eastern and western grey kangaroos live in a close-knit family group, known as a 'mob'. The mob consists of males and females. A female reproduces from a third to the twelfth year of her life, thus expanding the family. The kangaroos live for about 23 years in the wild. 

3. Kangaroo females can raise one young per year 

A joey or baby kangaroo is only an inch long at birth and lives in its mother's pouch for the first six months. They then leave the pouch, but return when they need to eat. Depending on the breed, the young kangaroos stop doing this when they are 13 to 18 months old. That means kangaroo females can raise only one young per year to complete independence. However, a kangaroo mother can suckle two joeys at the same time – one in the pouch and one outside the pouch – offering two different types of milk. 

4. Kangaroos use their tails a lot

Kangaroos spend much of the day grazing and moving relatively slowly by taking small steps in sync with their hind legs. They keep their balance with their front legs, and they use their tail to lean on, push off and move on. Essentially, kangaroos use their tail as an extra leg. 

5. Kangaroos have different enemies 

The dingo and wedge-tailed eagle are the natural enemies of the kangaroo. But humans are also an enemy of the kangaroo. More than 90 million kangaroos have been shot by humans in the past 30 years. The animals are hunted for their skin and meat. The kangaroo leather is used to make hats and shoes, among other things. The meat ends up in restaurants or pet food. In fact, the hunt for kangaroos is the single largest commercial slaughter of land-dwelling wild mammals. 

Kangaroo hunting is extremely cruel: the kangaroos are often not fatally shot and die a long, painful death. Joeys or young kangaroos, sometimes still in the pouch of the dead mother, are left to their own devices or killed on site. 

The Netherlands is one of the largest importers of kangaroo products. This is sold through small and large stores, including e-commerce giant Bol.com. That is why our office in The Netherlands is working to convince them that the sale of kangaroo products is not acceptable.

Together, we can end the global wildlife trade. Forever.  

The hunting of kangaroos is the largest commercial killing of land-based wildlife in the world