Geographic Range Black Wallaroos are found in limited areas on the sandstone escarpment and plateau of the western edge of Arnhem Land, a region of northern Australia located to the west of the Gulf of Carpentaria. Biogeographic Regions

australian native



Habitat These animals usually occur in a wide range of vegetation types varying from closed forests to open Eucalyptus forests to hummock grasslands and heaths. In most cases, they are found in areas that have large boulders in the landscape. Habitat Regions

temperate

tropical Terrestrial Biomes

forest

Physical Description The Black Wallaroo is one of the smallest species in the kangaroo family. They are roughly two thirds the size of northern wallaroos. They range from .8 meters tall in females, up to about 1 meter tall in males. The name comes from the color of the males, which are a sooty brown to glossy black, while females are a dark brown to grey color. The ears are shorter than nothern wallaroos. Unlike kangaroos where the muzzle is covered with hair, the black wallaroo's nose is completely naked. Other Physical Features

endothermic

bilateral symmetry Range mass 13 to 22 kg 28.63 to 48.46 lb

Reproduction The Black Wallaroo, similar to other wallaroos, breed continously throughout the year under good conditions. Females often increase their area of activity in order to attract the largest most dominant male in that area. Reproduction often depends on lactation to nourish the underdeveloped young, which depends on the availability of food resources. The female gestates between 31 and 36 days, and once born, the young, which are only a few centimeters in length, find their way to the mother's pouch and attach themselves to a nipple. A young is attached to the nipple until approximately 4 months of age, during which time the mother may be carrying another embryo in the uterus in an "embryonic diapause" or halted state of development. After the young detach themselves from the nipple, they continue to live in the pouch, but the mother is able to give birth to the other baby, which has resumed uterine development. The female wallaroo is then able to support two different aged joeys in the pouch simultaneously. Key Reproductive Features

year-round breeding

gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)

sexual

fertilization internal

viviparous

delayed implantation Breeding season All year

Range gestation period 31 to 36 days

Average weaning age 6 months The young emerge from the pouch after about 6 months. The mother can control the opening of the pouch with muscles to either keep the joey inside when the mother is alarmed or to get the joey to exit the pouch. Even after the joey is not living in the pouch anymore, it returns to the pouch to suckle for many months. Parental Investment

altricial

female parental care

Lifespan/Longevity Average lifespan

Status: captivity 11.8 years AnAge

Behavior The Black Wallaroo is a rather solitary animal, except while breeding; with no more than three individuals being found in a group (usually an adult male and female, along with a large young) Mothers often groom their young while it is still suckling but after it has exited the pouch. Aggressive behaviors are shown between males, but rarely lead to injury, and usually end quickly. Threatening displays include stiff-legged walking, pulling on grass or bushes, and upright postures. These animals are extremely shy, running until out of sight if approached. This makes them difficult to study, thus making the black wallaroo probably the least known of the kangaroos. Key Behaviors

motile

social

Communication and Perception Perception Channels

tactile

chemical

Food Habits Black Wallaroos are grazers, who spend between 7 and 14 hours a day feeding, depending on the season. They are most active at dawn and dusk, but relatively inactive during the middle of both the day and night when they are resting. They eat mostly grasses and shrubs but will occasionally eat other plants. Primary Diet

herbivore folivore

Plant Foods

leaves

Predation The Black Wallaroo uses camoflauge to hide from predators. They are also rather quick, and they rely on speed to escape predators. Predators include eagles, which take the young, dingos, foxes, crocodiles, and humans. Known Predators dingos (Canis lupus dingo) red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) eagles (Accipitridae) crocodiles (Crocodylidae) humans (Homo sapiens)



Economic Importance for Humans: Positive There are not many positive benefits to humans mainly because these animals live in such a small area of Australia. They do not intrude on farm land, and do not disturb crops. They are the only type of kangaroo which is not good to eat; the meat has a rank and unpleasant smell and taste.

Conservation Status The Black Wallaroo occurs naturally in a very small area, so it is important to protect this area. A large part of their habitat is located in the Kakadu National Park in Australia, which is already protected. The largest threat to the survival of the species is the change of fire patterns in their home range, which has altered the flora composition in the area where they live. Little is known about the abundance or population of this species, however, which makes it hard to determine if they are threatened by this change of fire patterns. IUCN Red List Near Threatened

More information

IUCN Red List Near Threatened

More information

US Federal List No special status

CITES No special status

Wallaroo actually means, "rock kangaroo."

Contributors Evan Hyatt (author), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, Bret Weinstein (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

Glossary Australian Living in Australia, New Zealand, Tasmania, New Guinea and associated islands. altricial young are born in a relatively underdeveloped state; they are unable to feed or care for themselves or locomote independently for a period of time after birth/hatching. In birds, naked and helpless after hatching. bilateral symmetry having body symmetry such that the animal can be divided in one plane into two mirror-image halves. Animals with bilateral symmetry have dorsal and ventral sides, as well as anterior and posterior ends. Synapomorphy of the Bilateria. chemical uses smells or other chemicals to communicate delayed implantation in mammals, a condition in which a fertilized egg reaches the uterus but delays its implantation in the uterine lining, sometimes for several months. endothermic animals that use metabolically generated heat to regulate body temperature independently of ambient temperature. Endothermy is a synapomorphy of the Mammalia, although it may have arisen in a (now extinct) synapsid ancestor; the fossil record does not distinguish these possibilities. Convergent in birds. female parental care parental care is carried out by females fertilization union of egg and spermatozoan folivore an animal that mainly eats leaves. forest forest biomes are dominated by trees, otherwise forest biomes can vary widely in amount of precipitation and seasonality. herbivore An animal that eats mainly plants or parts of plants. internal fertilization fertilization takes place within the female's body motile having the capacity to move from one place to another. native range the area in which the animal is naturally found, the region in which it is endemic. sexual reproduction that includes combining the genetic contribution of two individuals, a male and a female social associates with others of its species; forms social groups. tactile uses touch to communicate temperate that region of the Earth between 23.5 degrees North and 60 degrees North (between the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle) and between 23.5 degrees South and 60 degrees South (between the Tropic of Capricorn and the Antarctic Circle). tropical the region of the earth that surrounds the equator, from 23.5 degrees north to 23.5 degrees south. viviparous reproduction in which fertilization and development take place within the female body and the developing embryo derives nourishment from the female. year-round breeding breeding takes place throughout the year