Pale-tailed Kangaroo on Black Mountain Nature Reserve, a Rose Robin and some migrating honeyeaters

[Nathanael Coyne <>]

I would love to be able to cite a source to back up my outrageous claim but it has so far eluded my attempts to find it again.

I have however found plenty of research that refutes the claim so I'm guessing wherever I read this was wrong.

It's possible that I recalled incorrectly and it may have been more along the lines of "Wallaroos are disproportionately represented in roadkill given their population in comparison to Eastern Greys in the ACT".

I'll keep looking.

Nathanael Coyne (Boehm)

www.purecaffeine.com

Canberra, Australia
0431 698 580

On 2 May 2015 at 23:13, Philip Veerman <> wrote:

I agree with Mark, if that is a fact it would certainly be a surprise. Many road killed EGK and no Wallaroos.  In my 30 plus years in ACT I’ve encountered about 2 to 5 Wallaroos. About the original comment, Wallaroos don’t have pale tails, or at least not a identifying feature.........  Red Kangaroos do.............

 

Philip

 

From: Mark Clayton [
Sent: Saturday, 2 May 2015 9:13 PM
To: 'Nathanael Coyne'; 'canberrabirds chatline'
Subject: RE: [canberrabirds] Pale-tailed Kangaroo on Black Mountain Nature Reserve, a Rose Robin and some migrating honeyeaters

 

Hi Nathan,

 

I would be interested in the source of this claim. I have lived (and driven) in the ACT almost all my life (60+ years) and I would say that for every 1000 Eastern Grey Kangaroos I have seen I would have seen no more that 50 Wallaroos, and that is probably an over estimate. These have mostly been between the Cotter and up towards the Uriarra settlement, west of the Murrumbidgee River, and deep within Namadgi National Park, all in fairly steep and rocky country. In some of the grassland reserves around Gungahlin I have recently seen mobs of up to 200 Eastern Grey Kangaroos but never any Wallaroos. I have probably only ever seen about 10 road killed Wallaroos compared to many hundreds of Eastern Grey Kangaroos. Why anyone would claim what you state is beyond me.

 

Cheers,

Mark

 

From: Nathanael Coyne [
Sent: Saturday, 2 May 2015 6:47 PM
To: canberrabirds chatline
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] Pale-tailed Kangaroo on Black Mountain Nature Reserve, a Rose Robin and some migrating honeyeaters

 

Surprising fact I learned a few months ago; Wallaroos are killed by cars in Canberra (or perhaps the ACT) more often than Eastern Greys.

 

 

Nathanael Coyne (Boehm)

www.purecaffeine.com

Canberra, Australia
0431 698 580

 

On 2 May 2015 at 16:58, Mark Clayton <> wrote:

I may well be wrong but this looks like a Euro (Wallaroo) to me. It appears too "hairy" for your standard Eastern Grey Kangaroo.

Mark

-----Original Message-----
From: Con Boekel [
Sent: Saturday, 2 May 2015 4:49 PM
To: canberrabirds chatline
Subject: Pale-tailed Kangaroo on Black Mountain Nature Reserve, a Rose Robin and some migrating honeyeaters

Not a bird, but someone conversant with macropodic marsupials might know why this one has a pale tail.

There was a female Rose Robin lurking between the electricity substation, the CSIRO workshop and the ANGB plastic house, Frith Road this afternoon. I heard Rose Robin calls on three other occasions but was not sure whether it was the same bird. It was hanging around with a large MFF. There were large parties of honeyeaters (up to 50). Going on the calls alone, White-naped Honeyeaters were in the majority.

Con