【明報專訊】The red-necked wallaby (紅頸袋鼠) is just like a super-cute, mini version of the kangaroo. In fact, wallabies and kangaroos belong to the same animal family, and they are all marsupials (有袋動物). Marsupials are a unique group of mammals because the females of most species "bring their own bag" — they have a pouch (小袋)! It is for neither holding water nor holding food, but is a baby carrier. Let's see how the pouch of a red-necked wallaby works!

Special baby formula

A mother wallaby gives birth to its baby after only about 30 days of gestation. Often called a "joey", the newborn baby wallaby is not yet fully developed and is really tiny, only about the size of a jellybean! Once born, the baby climbs out through her mother's birth canal into the pouch and stays there in total comfort. The milk that the baby suckles from its mother's cozy, warm pouch is a very special formula that amazingly changes both in amount and make-up as the baby grows up!

Ready for the world

When it reaches six months old, the baby wallaby will begin to take its first peeks of the world from within its mother's pouch. A month later, it will start to venture out of the safety of the pouch and explore the outside world. A mother's love is deep — she is always ready to welcome back the young wallaby, offering her pouch to give her child both nourishment and comfort for a few extra months before it is finally ready to go into the world and become independent.

Australia our home

A red-necked wallaby has reddish fur around its nape (脖頸) and shoulder. When full-grown, it is around 80cm tall, with a long tapering tail that measures up to 75cm. Where is it found? Australia only! Wild red-necked wallabies are found mostly in eastern and south-eastern Australia and are very common in Tasmania. They like making their homes in the eucalyptus (桉樹)forests, dotted with shrubs and open areas. These wallabies are also very agile, hopping their way around the forest, feeding on grasses and herbs. In daytime, they hide and rest, only becoming active again at dusk.

Nimble hopping creatures

Red-necked wallabies are usually loners, preferring to live on their own, but when winter sets in, they often group together to share food with each other. Wallabies are very sensitive animals with an acute sense of smell and prominent ears! Their forelimbs are also very nimble, and they use them to grasp tree-branches in order to graze, groom themselves, and hold open their pouches for cleaning. As you can imagine, those hind legs are also pretty powerful, allowing them to hop around!

Text and photos: Ocean Park Hong Kong

■Glossary

venture (v) 探索

nourishment (n) 營養

extra (adj) 額外的

nimble (adj) 靈活的

[Smarties' Power English 第231期]