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What the sources say

Red KangarooOsphranter rufus

Every figure, record and mechanism on the Red Kangaroo profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 63 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.

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Source
01

Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan

Macropus rufus (red kangaroo). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

The page saysAustralia's biggest marsupial
The source saysMacropus rufus is the largest living marsupial.
The page sayson powerful hind legs
The source saysRed kangaroo hind legs are powerfulNote: reviewer (2026-09): replaces "spring-loaded legs", which stated the tendon hypothesis as fact (kram-dawson-1998 says only that the effect "has been attributed to" tendons).
The page saysbalanced by a tail it can also rest on
The source saysThe tail is strong enough to support the kangaroo's body weight, acts as a balance when jumping, and is used, with the two legs, to form a tripod for resting.Note: final review (2026-09): "tripod tail for balance" merged the tail's two jobs; the tripod is for resting, the balance is for jumping.
The page sayswhose powerful hind legs
The source saysRed kangaroo hind legs are powerfulNote: vibe.reason; "a pounding, relentless beat" describes the song and states nothing about the animal.
The page saysArid and semi-arid plains, deserts, and scrublands across central Australia
The source saysMacropus rufus occurs over most of the dry, inland, central part of Australia. This expansive area includes scrubland, shrubland, grassland, and desert habitats.Note: "semi-arid" also matches australian-museum-red-kangaroo: "found throughout the semi-arid and arid regions of mainland Australia." "plains": adw "They prefer to forage in open plains habitats".
The page sayssucculent plants
The source saysThese herbivores can go without water for long periods of time by consuming moisture-filled succulent plants.
The page saysPowerful hind legs and a balancing tail
The source saysRed kangaroo hind legs are powerful and the tail acts to balance the body in a bipedal hop as their legs propel them forwards.
The page saysA red kangaroo's powerful hind legs drive it forward in a bipedal hop, while its tail balances the body.
The source saysRed kangaroo hind legs are powerful and the tail acts to balance the body in a bipedal hop as their legs propel them forwards.
The page saysIt also has an odd five-legged gait, balancing on its forelimbs and tail while both back legs swing forward together.
The source saysRed kangaroos also use their tail an a kind of 5-"legged" gait, where the forelimbs and tail balance the animal as the two rear legs are moved forward simultaneously.Note: source text has a typo ("an a kind"); "five" is its "5". Reviewer (2026-09): "At slower speeds it switches to" cut, since no source ties the gait to speed.
The page saysA Built-In Third Leg
The source saysThe tail is strong enough to support the kangaroo's body weight, acts as a balance when jumping, and is used, with the two legs, to form a tripod for resting.Note: label naming the blockquote, not itself a factual claim; the fact it names is claimed below.
The page saysA Built-In Third Leg The tail is strong enough to support the kangaroo's own body weight.
The source saysThe tail is strong enough to support the kangaroo's body weight, acts as a balance when jumping, and is used, with the two legs, to form a tripod for resting.
The page saysIt works as a balance beam mid-jump, and together with the two legs it forms a tripod the kangaroo rests on.
The source saysThe tail is strong enough to support the kangaroo's body weight, acts as a balance when jumping, and is used, with the two legs, to form a tripod for resting.
The page saysThe red kangaroo is the largest living marsupial.
The source saysMacropus rufus is the largest living marsupial.
The page saysMales usually wear reddish-brown fur and females blue-gray, though in some areas those colors swap
The source saysCoat color is usually reddish brown in males and bluish gray in females, although these colors are reversed in some areas, with females being reddish and males blue-gray.
The page saysdry, inland heart of Australia
The source saysMacropus rufus occurs over most of the dry, inland, central part of Australia.
The page saysrainfall averages less than 500 millimeters a year
The source saysareas where rainfall averages less than 500 millimetersNote: "a year" names the unit an average rainfall figure is given in.
The page saysThey prefer to feed on open plains
The source saysThey prefer to forage in open plains habitats with neither trees nor bushes
The page saysseldom found anywhere without scattered trees for shade and shelter
The source saysseldom found in regions without shade and shelter from scattered trees
The page saysRed kangaroos are exclusively plant-eaters
The source saysRed kangaroos are exclusively plant-eaters
The page saysThey can go without drinking for long stretches by drawing moisture from succulent plants instead.
The source saysThese herbivores can go without water for long periods of time by consuming moisture-filled succulent plants.
The page sayssmall groups called mobs, made up mostly of females and their young with one or more males; groups average around 10 animals
The source saysRed kangaroos occur in small groups, averaging 10, called "mobs." These groups are made up mainly of females and their offspring, with one or several males.
The page sayscompetition for mates sometimes turns into a boxing match, where they hit at each other with their forepaws and kick with their feet
The source saysThis competition sometimes leads to "boxing" matches, where males hit at each other with their forepaws and kick with their feet.
The page saysA grown red kangaroo's size reduces the predation risk it faces
The source saysTheir large size reduces the predation risks faced by red kangaroos.
The page saysit can fight back with powerful kicks from its clawed feet
The source saysred kangaroos can use their robust legs and clawed feet to defend themselves from attackers with kicks and blows
The page saysDingoes may prey on red kangaroos
The source saysThey may be preyed on by dingosNote: reviewer (2026-09): "They" in the source is red kangaroos generally; the page said "adults".
The page sayslarge raptors may take very young joeys just out of the pouch
The source saysvery young joeys, just out of the pouch, may be taken by large raptors
The page saysHumans have long hunted kangaroos for meat and hides
The source saysHumans have historically hunted kangaroos for their meat and hidesNote: final review (2026-09): "still the main source of predation" cut, a present-tense rank resting only on the undated ADW page.
The page saysEvery Australian state regulates that hunting
The source saysAll Australian states regulate the hunting of kangaroos.
The page saysMales compete for access to females and try to drive off rivals.
The source saysMales will try to monopolize access to several females and will actively drive away other males.
The page sayscompetition sometimes turns into a boxing match, where the males hit at each other with their forepaws and kick with their feet.
The source saysThis competition sometimes leads to "boxing" matches, where males hit at each other with their forepaws and kick with their feet.
The page saysaveraging just 2.5 centimeters long and 0.75 grams
The source saysRed kangaroo joeys are tiny when born, averaging only 2.5 centimeters long and 0.75 grams.
The page saysApart from a well-developed tongue, jaw muscles, nostrils, forelimbs and digits, its outer features are still embryonic.
The source saysThey are born with well-developed tongues, jaw muscles, nostrils, forelimbs, and digits. Otherwise their external features are embryonic.
The page saysIt makes its own way from the birth canal into its mother's pouch, where it attaches itself to a nipple.
The source saysRed kangaroo young are tiny when born and make their own way from the birth canal to the pouch and a nippleNote: reviewer (2026-09): "for about 70 days" cut, a duration resting only on the ADW page; australian-museum-red-kangaroo gives no attachment period.

Source
02

Australian Museum

Red Kangaroo. Australian Museum.

The page saysGrasses, forbs, chenopod shrubs like saltbush, and succulent plants
The source saysRed Kangaroos are herbivores, primarily grazing on grasses but also eat forbs and leaves of shrubs.Note: the chenopod-shrub and saltbush parts are sourced to burden-2021 below, and "succulent plants" to the adw water quote below.
The page saysA male's body can reach 1.4 meters long
The source saysMales – up to 1.4mNote: final review (2026-09): ADW's 1,300 to 1,600 mm dropped; the current Australian Museum page disagrees, so the page follows it.
The page saysplus a tail of up to 1 meter
The source saysa body length of up to 1.4m and tail up to 1m
The page saysa female's body up to 1.1 meters
The source saysFemales – up to 1.1m
The page saysAdult males can weigh up to 92 kg
The source sayscan weigh up to 92kgNote: gap-hunter (2026-09): corroborated by a second current source, taronga-red-kangaroo ('Male Red Kangaroos can weigh from 65-92kg').
The page saysfemales up to 39 kg
The source saysthe females can weigh up to 39kg
The page saysgrazing mainly on grasses but also eating forbs and the leaves of shrubs
The source saysRed Kangaroos are herbivores, primarily grazing on grasses but also eat forbs and leaves of shrubs.Note: reviewer (2026-09): replaces "feasting mostly on green grasses and broad-leaved herbs"; adw gives only a "preferred diet", not a "mostly".
The page saysRed kangaroos can survive when water is scarce.
The source saysThe Red Kangaroo has the ability to survive when water is scarce.
The page saysThe plants and leaves they eat supply the water they need as well as their nutrition.
The source saysThe herbage and foliage that the Kangaroo eats provides them with their water needs as well as their nutritional requirements.
The page saysPopulations can still suffer in a drought, as their food supplies shrink.
The source saysIn times of drought, Red Kangaroo populations can suffer as their food supplies diminish.

Source
03

Dawson et al. 2021

Dawson et al. (2021). The burden of size and growth for the juveniles of large mammalian herbivores: Structural and functional constraints in the feeding biology of juveniles relative to adults in red kangaroos, Osphranter rufus. Ecology and Evolution.

The page sayschenopod shrubs like saltbush
The source saysAdult diets had moved to chenopod shrubs, 50 ± 10.9%, with grass declining to 38 ± 11.0%.
The page sayschenopod shrubs like saltbush
The source saysflat‐leaved chenopod shrubs, genera Atriplex and Rhagodia (salt bushes)Note: reviewer (2026-09): the study site's own list names saltbush as one of the chenopod shrubs, so the word is the source's.
The page saysin moderate seasons
The source saysgeneral growth patterns under moderate seasonal conditionsNote: reviewer (2026-09): the plateau is the paper's statement of the general pattern under moderate conditions, citing Dawson 2012, not a finding of its own field sample, so "a 2021 field study of wild females found" was cut and the condition put back.
The page saysa female's growth levels off at 28 to 30 kg by 6 to 8 years old
The source saysUnder such conditions, females may be sexually mature before they reach a BM of 20 kg, at around 3 years, with growth plateauing at 28–30 kg by 6–8 yearsNote: the quote's "may" governs sexual maturity before 20 kg, which the page does not claim; the plateau is stated flatly.
The page saysGrass made up around 90% of one studied population's diet in a good season
The source saysIn the good season, grasses, mostly green, dominated the diets (~90%) of all O. rufusNote: the study sampled one good season and one dry one, so "a good season", not "good seasons".
The page saysin the dry spell that followed, adult females switched to a diet of about half chenopod shrubs
The source saysIn the subsequent dry conditions, grasses were still selected from the available biomass. However, while they provided most of the juvenile diet (70%), adult female intakes moved to 50% chenopod shrubsNote: "about half" is the quote's 50%.

Source
04

Chu, Cornwell & Letnic 2021

Chu, Cornwell & Letnic (2021). Mistletoes Facilitate a Desert Herbivore by Improving the Quality of Shade. Ecosystems.

The page saysa 2021 study in the Strzelecki Desert found kangaroos were about three times more likely to shelter under mulga trees carrying mistletoe than under trees stripped of it
The source saysin Australia’s Strzelecki Desert. We experimentally removed the pale-leaved mistletoe (Amyema maidenii) from mulga trees (Acacia aneura) ... kangaroos were approximately three times more likely to shelter beneath trees where mistletoe was present (control) compared to where mistletoes had been removed (treatment)Note: "2021" is the paper's publication year (UNSW record: 2021-01-29). Reviewer (2026-09): study site and the comparison put back; "because the extra canopy" cut, since the abstract never mentions canopy.
The page saysand that the shade under the mistletoe trees was cooler by day
The source saysaverage hourly temperature during the daytime and daily maximum temperature were cooler

Source
05

Ellis et al. 2016

Ellis et al. (2016). Macropus rufus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T40567A21953534.

The page saysLeast Concern
The source saysLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2015Note: hand check expected: verify:quotes cannot resolve the category through GBIF under the assessment's old-binomial title, per the source pack. Also stated directly by adw-red-kangaroo: "IUCN Red List Least Concern".
The page saysthe IUCN Red List rates the red kangaroo Least Concern
The source saysLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2015Note: hand check expected, see Least Concern claim above; also stated by adw-red-kangaroo: "IUCN Red List Least Concern".

Source
06

Taronga Conservation Society Australia

Red Kangaroo. Taronga Conservation Society Australia.

The page sayshopping at 64 km/h
The source saysThey're fast! They can hop at 64km per hour.Note: reviewer (2026-09): moved from adw-red-kangaroo, whose 64 kph sentence is about "Large kangaroos" generally; Taronga states it of the red kangaroo.
The page sayscan hop it along at 64 km/h
The source saysThey're fast! They can hop at 64km per hour.
The page sayscarry it at up to 64 km/h
The source saysThey're fast! They can hop at 64km per hour.
The page saysAt full stretch it can hop at 64 km/h (about 40 mph).
The source saysThey're fast! They can hop at 64km per hour.Note: 40 mph is a unit conversion of 64 km/h (39.8 mph). Moved from adw-red-kangaroo, whose sentence is about "Large kangaroos".
The page saysRed kangaroos can live up to 20 years in the wild, and up to 23 years in care.
The source saysRed Kangaroos can live up to 20 yrs in the wild and 23 yrs in care.
The page saysA red kangaroo can hop at 64 km/h (about 40 mph).
The source saysThey're fast! They can hop at 64km per hour.Note: 40 mph is a unit conversion of 64 km/h (39.8 mph).

Source
07

Kram & Dawson 1998

Kram & Dawson (1998). Energetics and biomechanics of locomotion by red kangaroos (Macropus rufus). Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part B: Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.

The page saysits energy use stays nearly the same as it hops faster on level ground
The source saysAs red kangaroos hop faster over level ground, their rate of oxygen consumption (indicating metabolic energy consumption) remains nearly the same.
The page saysAs it hops faster on level ground, its energy use stays nearly the same.
The source saysAs red kangaroos hop faster over level ground, their rate of oxygen consumption (indicating metabolic energy consumption) remains nearly the same.
The page saysScientists have credited that to long, stretchy tendons in its legs that store elastic energy and give it back.
The source saysThis phenomenon has been attributed to exceptional elastic energy storage and recovery via long compliant tendons in the legs.Note: reviewer (2026-09): "has been attributed to" kept as an attribution; "running down the ankles", "stretch on landing and snap back on takeoff" and "from one hop ... on the next" cut as detail the abstract never gives.
The page saysA 1998 study tested a rival explanation, exceptionally efficient muscles, and found their efficiency was normal: about 30%.
The source saysAlternatively, red kangaroos may have exceptionally efficient muscles. To estimate efficiency, we measured the metabolic cost of uphill hopping ... However, efficiency values were normal, approximately 30%.Note: 1998 is the paper's publication year (reference entry). The quote's "may" belongs to the hypothesis being tested, which the sentence presents as a hypothesis.

How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.