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Joey Kangaroo - Creation Masterpiece
By Laraine Rose
IMAGINE yourself in the Australian bush. As you look around, you note an impression in the ground that resembles the figure eleven. What are you looking at? Why, just one of the many characteristics of the Australian animal creation that make it different from those in other lands. You are seeing the tracks left by the animal that hops instead of runs - the kangaroo. Suppose you follow a set of tracks a little way. Note that here and there a third stroke is added to the pair, beneath and between them. That is where he rested, sitting upon his thick tail and maybe thumping the ground with it to signal others of the herd. Stand very quiet and just look. There, did you see those pointed "leaves" rise behind that bush? He has also spotted us. See with what graceful bounds "old man roo," as we call him, clears obstacles on his way to safety! His mode of travel is only one of a number of things that make the kangaroo different. "Joey," as we call the young of the kangaroo, highlights more of the differences. These start before its birth. The kangaroo is what is called "marsupial," meaning having a pouch in which to carry its young. But actually the designation marsupial has a deeper connotation than simply that. Joey’s Remarkable Birth Animals that are not marsupial are called "placental," meaning that the mother has a womb in which the embryo is nurtured and to which it is joined by a "placenta." Joey’s Ma has no womb. Instead, he starts to grow soon after conception in a yolk sac in which the embryo is nourished until, from eight to forty days later, according to kind, the sac ruptures and joey is born. I say "born," but "produced" might be better. Because when he leaves his mother he is still in a semi-embryonic state, with no eyes or ears developed and having only the sense of smell. In appearance he resembles a bit of shaped, almost transparent rubber. Now prepare yourself for something really amazing. This tiny embryonic creature, big as a bean, climbs hand over hand up its mother’s fur, guided, it is believed, by its sense of smell, in search of her pouch - a journey taking about three minutes. Locating it, if he does, he dives inside, there to complete the birth process, which takes several months. But suppose he misses the pouch, what then? Too bad! He could go wandering for up to half an hour, and if he still fails, his life career comes to an early end. And what is Ma kangaroo doing about all of this? Just nothing. She does not worry. By this time in all probability she has already conceived again while joey was in the birth passage. But the new embryo will not develop beyond one hundred cells. At this stage its development is arrested in what is called a "blastocyst" against some such emergency as this. And in this arrested stage of development it will remain until the pouch is unoccupied and only then will it resume its growth. But our joey did make it. He reached his destination quite unassisted. Mamma kangaroo made very scant preparation, merely licking the pouch clean and then sitting with her tail forward and leaning against a tree to keep her from tumbling from this unstable posture. Once inside the pouch, joey fixes on to a nipple, and this immediately swells and locks him there, and Ma, by muscular action squirts her milk down his tiny throat. From now on you can remove joey only by rupturing his mouth. So incredible is the whole process that early explorers and naturalists thought joey was born in the pouch, "like apples on a twig," as one described it. It was many years later that the London Zoo first witnessed the embryonic birth and even then thought the mother transferred the young to the pouch with her lips. Not until 1932 was it known that it made its way to the pouch unaided. We can pass by the period that joey is in the pouch, except to note that he grows there from the size of a bean, thirty-three to the ounce, to some few pounds. Only after eight months and when weaned does he detach himself and start to leave the pouch for short periods. Even so, he still likes to take breakfast in bed - a feat he easily manages by leaning out of bed and nibbling at the passing grass as Ma forages. Running (hopping) now with from six to fifty roos, joey grows to kangaroohood, being called "old man roo" in bush language. If he is of the "red" variety he may grow to five or six feet tall, weigh up to 200 pounds, jump as high as ten feet and travel twenty feet at a bound, thirty miles an hour. He is a mild or even timid creature unless cornered and fighting for his life. Then, with back to a tree and sitting upon his tail, he threshes away with fore and hind legs and sharp claws - a match for several dogs. And if he feels he is getting the worst of it, he will bound away to a "billabong," or water hole. There, standing up to his waist in water, he will submerge dog after dog as they swim to him and hold them beneath his tail or legs until they drown. So much just now for the kangaroo.
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Contributor's Note
This bit of research was transformed into a story for my daughter when she was 5 years old.
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Kangaroo by Weldoener
PLEASE VISIT THE CONTRIBUTOR'S WEBSITE
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I found this to be amazing information. Having breakfast in bed sounds pretty fun too.
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Funny you should say that. My daughter asked me if it was something like having cinnamon and toast in bed, then giggled.
WOW, Loraine, what a great intel. This is so well researched and written.
Thank you for sharing.
Best to you.
Frederick
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Thanks for reading it, Frederick. I have never been to Australia but used to live near a zoo where I studied these marvelous creatures.
Best Wishes,
Thanks, Laraine. Pretty cool intel!
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Thanks James.
I did a little search and found there is The Outback Christmas Tree and Kangaroo Farm right here in Arlington, WA. I just put kangaroo in Google and kangaroo farm arlington wa was one of the suggestions. They are at 10030 State Route 530 NE
Arlington, WA 98223-8126
(360) 403-7474 I got the directions. It is about 130 mi – about 2 hours 17 minutes away. If I take my camera that could make an interesting Intel. Of course I would include some pictures of Christmas trees too 
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
It's amazing what we can find in our own neck of the woods, isn't it. I have written an article on "Staycations" on Squidoo. Wish you could see it.
I think I saw this birth process documented on TV once, pretty amazing. They sound pretty strong, and clever as well.
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
There is a National Geographic video on this - maybe you saw that? Probably David Suzuki filmed it too. I'd be interested to know where you saw it. Does this ring any bells?
Amazing info. Thanks for sharing.
CONTRIBUTOR'S REPLY
Thank you.
Best wishes,
Laraine
The copyright for this content entitled "Joey Kangaroo - Creation Masterpiece" has been specified by the contributor as:
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This intel was contributed by Laraine
Laraine
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May, 2012
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