canberrabirds

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

To: "'Matthew Willis'" <>, "'Steve Holliday'" <>
Subject: Pale-tailed Kangaroo on Black Mountain Nature Reserve, a Rose Robin and some migrating honeyeaters
From: "Philip Veerman" <>
Date: Sun, 10 May 2015 22:02:27 +1000

Yes my comment about Red Kangaroos having a pale tail was a general comment to suggest that calling a macropod a Wallaroo because of a pale tail is not always valid but in no way suggesting that there are any of them here or that Con’s photo could fit a RK. It was sort of in suggestion that a pale tail goes against being an EGK.  The male Wallaroo I saw yesterday had a very definite black tail and feet, the blackest bits of him that was otherwise very dark brown to black...... So there is a sex difference in colour in the Wallaroos here as well as size and shape. Red Kangaroos also have a sex difference in colour but Eastern Grey Kangaroos apparently don’t, or not noticeable......  I think from its build and shaggy fur Matthew’s photo is a Wallaroo. Its tail is pale with a dark tip. The books say Wallaroos have a bare (unfurred) nose which appears to be the case.

 

Philip

 

From: Matthew Willis [
Sent: Sunday, 10 May 2015 6:42 PM
To: Steve Holliday
Cc: canberrabirds chatline
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] Pale-tailed Kangaroo on Black Mountain Nature Reserve, a Rose Robin and some migrating honeyeaters

 

Based on all of this, I'm thinking this must be a Wallaroo I saw hanging out with the Eastern Greys at Tidbinbilla a few months back.

 

Wallaroo?

 

Matthew

 

 

 

On Sun, May 10, 2015 at 5:58 PM, Steve Holliday <> wrote:

Been away for a week but have a couple of comments to add.

I think tail colour is an easy and reliable way to separate a grey female Wallaroo from an Eastern Grey, at least in our local area -  the tail is consistently cream or even pale yellowish, as shown in Con's photo, Eastern Grey invariably has a black end of the tail. Very useful when the animal is fleeing from you. I note Philip's comment about Red Kangaroos having a pale tail but would be surprised if there are any wild ones within 200km of the ACT.

As regards distribution, there are quite a few Wallaroos in the quieter, hillier parts of Goorooyarroo NR, I have seen up to a dozen at a time there. Last year I saw 2 near the Mt Ainslie summit, the only Wallaroos I have recorded there. They may be part of a small resident population, or perhaps more likely, wandered across the Federal Highway from Gooroo. A few years ago while doing bird surveys along the undeveloped parts of the Molonglo, west of Coppin's Crossing, I saw many Wallaroos (and a lot of feral goats!).

Regards

Steve

-----Original Message-----
From: Con Boekel [
Sent: Saturday, 2 May 2015 4:49 PM
To: canberrabirds chatline
Subject: [canberrabirds] 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

*******************************************************************************************************

<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>
Admin

The University of NSW School of Computer and Engineering takes no responsibility for the contents of this archive. It is purely a compilation of material sent by many people to the Canberra Ornithologists Group mailing list. It has not been checked for accuracy nor its content verified in any way. If you wish to get material removed from the archive or have other queries about the list contact David McDonald, list manager, phone (02) 6231 8904 or email . If you can not contact David McDonald e-mail Andrew Taylor at this address: andrewt@cse.unsw.EDU.AU