kangaroos - Simple English Wiktionary (2024)

FAQs

How do you pronounce kangaroo in IPA? ›

Modern IPA: káŋgərʉ́w. Traditional IPA: ˌkæŋgəˈruː 3 syllables: "KAN" + "guh" + "ROO"

They are the tallest of all marsupials, standing over 6 feet tall. Kangaroos live in Eastern Australia. They live in small groups called troops or herds (“mobs” by Australians), typically made up of 50 or more animals. If threatened, kangaroos pound the ground with their strong feet in warning.

The plural of kangaroo is kangaroos.

All kangaroos have short hair, powerful hind legs, small forelimbs, big feet and a long tail. They have excellent hearing and keen eyesight. Depending on the species, their fur coat can be red, grey or light to dark brown. Their muscular tail is used for balance when hopping, and as another limb when moving about.

Modern IPA: djʉ́wd. Traditional IPA: djuːd. 1 syllable: "DYOOD"

Modern IPA: gə́ːl. Traditional IPA: gɜːl. 1 syllable: "GURL"

A female kangaroo is called a doe, flyer, jill or roo; a male is called a buck, boomer, jack or old man.

Kangaroos usually have one young annually. The joey remains in the pouch for nine months and continues to suckle until twelve to seventeen months of age. Kangaroos can have 3 babies at one time.

Kangaroos can swim and normally do so to cross rivers or defend themselves and avoid predators. They keep their heads above the water to breathe and paddle with their legs, which move independently in the water. They use their tail to propel through the water and can even use their front paws to drown pursuers.

Kangaroos might be capable of intentionally communicating with humans, suggesting the bounding marsupials might be more intelligent than previously thought, reports Matilda Boseley for the Guardian.

Do kangaroos eat meat? ›

There are four main types of kangaroos: red kangaroos, eastern grey kangaroos, western grey kangaroos, and antilopine kangaroos. All kangaroos eat only plants, so they are considered herbivores. Because they live in different habitats, each species of kangaroo has a slightly different diet, but none of them eat meat.

Surprisingly, kangaroos can go a long time without drinking water. When kangaroos eat, they regurgitate their food and chew it some more before swallowing it again. This, combined with the moisture in the plants they eat, allows kangaroos to survive without water for long periods.

A baby kangaroos is called a joey. Unlike the young of most other mammals, a newborn kangaroo is highly underdeveloped and embryo-like at birth. After a gestation of up to 34 days, the jellybean-sized baby kangaroo makes the journey from birth canal to pouch by clambering up through its mother's fur.

Modern IPA: ánəməl. Traditional IPA: ˈænəməl. 3 syllables: "AN" + "uh" + "muhl"

Below is the UK transcription for 'version': Modern IPA: və́ːʃən. Traditional IPA: ˈvɜːʃən. 2 syllables: "VUR" + "shuhn"

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is an alphabetic system of phonetic notation based primarily on the Latin script. It was devised by the International Phonetic Association in the late 19th century as a standardized representation of speech sounds in written form.