The kangaroo belongs to the Macropodidae family of marsupials (macropods, meaning “large foot”). The name is commonly used to refer to the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern grey kangaroo, and western grey kangaroo, which are all members of this family. Australia and New Guinea are home to kangaroos. According to the Australian government, 34.3 million kangaroos lived in Australia’s commercial harvest regions in 2011, up from 25.1 million the previous year.

“Kangaroo” refers to a paraphyletic collection of taxa, similar to “wallaroo” and “wallaby.” All three are members of the same taxonomic family, Macropodidae, and are differentiated by size. The biggest members of the family are known as “kangaroos,” while the tiniest are known as “wallabies.”

Kangaroos have a tiny head and huge, strong hind legs, large feet suitable for leaping, a long muscular tail for balance, and a long muscular tail for balance. Female kangaroos, like most marsupials, have a pouch called a marsupium in which their joeys finish their postnatal development.

The larger kangaroos have adapted to land clearance for pastoral agriculture and habitat changes brought to the Australian environment by humans far better than the smaller macropods. Many of the smaller species are uncommon or endangered, but kangaroos are abundant.

The kangaroo is a national emblem of Australia, appearing on the Australian coat of arms and part of its currency, and serving as a logo for some of the country’s most well-known companies, including Qantas and the Royal Australian Air Force’s roundel. Because the kangaroo is so essential to Australian culture and the national image, there are countless pop culture allusions to it.

Kangaroos in the wild are hunted for meat, leather, and to preserve grazing area. Although controversial, kangaroo meat has been shown to provide health advantages when compared to other meats due to the low fat content of kangaroos.

Kangaroo comes from the Guugu Yimithirr term gangurru, which refers to eastern grey kangaroos. The name “kanguru” was first recorded in an entry in Sir Joseph Banks’ diary on July 12, 1770, at the site of modern-day Cooktown, on the banks of the Endeavour River, where the HMS Endeavour, commanded by Lieutenant James Cook, was beached for nearly seven weeks to repair damage sustained on the Great Barrier Reef. Cook first mentioned kangaroos in his 4 August journal entry. Guugu Yimithirr is the language of the people of the area.

They inquired of a neighboring resident about the creatures’ names. The local’s response was “kangaroo,” which Cook mistook for the creature’s name since it meant “I don’t know/understand.” Although linguist John B. Haviland was able to clarify that gangurru referred to a rare big dark-colored species of kangaroo during his fieldwork with the Guugu Yimithirr people in 1972, few people took notice.

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