Forelimb musculature of kangaroos with particular emphasis on the tammar wallaby Macropus eugenii (Desmarest, 1817)

2010 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn J. Harvey ◽  
Natalie Warburton
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Spatial Arrangement ◽  
Tammar Wallaby ◽  
Macropus Eugenii ◽  
Red Kangaroo ◽  
Morphological Studies ◽  
Shoulder Muscles ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Future Work

Comparative morphological studies can provide insights into an animal’s ecology and evolutionary history. Functional morphological studies of the kangaroo forelimb are few in number and new work could provide novel tools to aid in the interpretation of fossil taxa and the understanding of the evolutionary history of kangaroos and marsupials as a whole. A description of the shoulder and forelimb musculature of the tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii) with comparisons to the red kangaroo (Macropus rufus Desmarest, 1842), the western grey kangaroo (Macropus fuliginosus Desmarest, 1817) and the quokka (Setonix brachyurus Quoy & Gaimard, 1830) is presented. The species chosen were readily available and represent a range in size of the archetypal kangaroo form. Muscle maps of forelimb and shoulder muscles were constructed as an aid to comparing the spatial arrangement of muscle origins and insertions. The anatomical pattern of forelimb musculature in terrestrial macropodine kangaroos and wallabies is highly conservative. Functionally, the musculature of the forelimb corresponds to a supporting role of the limb during slow pentapedal locomotion. The illustrations of muscle insertions provided in this work will be a useful reference for future work in comparative marsupial anatomy and palaeobiology.

Fluoroacetate Tolerance, a Genetic Marker in Some Australian Mammals.

1979 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 363 ◽  
Author(s):  
AJ Oliver ◽  
DR King ◽  
RJ Mead
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Marker ◽  
Geographic Origin ◽  
Tammar Wallaby ◽  
Southeastern Australia ◽  
Toxic Plants ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo ◽  
History Of ◽  
Genetic Tolerance ◽  
High Level

The toxin fluoroacetate occurs naturally in many southwestern Australian species of the legume genera Gastrolobium and Oxylobium. No fluoroacetate-bearing species are known from southeastern Australia. Herbivores have evolved a high level of genetic tolerance to this toxin; this has persisted in some mammalian herbivores whose range now extends beyond the range of the toxic plants. Other species of mammals have acquired tolerance since extending their range into south-western Australia. This tolerance can be used as a genetic marker to identify the geographic origin and trace the subsequent spread of herbivorous mammals in southern Australia. In this paper, this marker has been used to clarify the recent evolutionary history of the western grey kangaroo, the tammar wallaby and the bush rat.

Proteins of Marsupial Erythrocyte Membranes

1985 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 121 ◽  
Author(s):  
GB Ralston
Keyword(s):  
Erythrocyte Membrane ◽  
Human Erythrocyte ◽  
Sodium Dodecyl ◽  
Tammar Wallaby ◽  
Erythrocyte Membranes ◽  
Blue Staining ◽  
Human Erythrocyte Membrane ◽  
Coomassie Blue Staining ◽  
Red Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo

The proteins of erythrocyte membranes from the red kangaroo, western grey kangaroo, eastern grey wallaroo (euro), red-necked wallaby, Tammar wallaby, and brush-tail possum have been fractionated on acrylamide gels in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulfate. The pattern of proteins was remarkably similar between the different marsupial species. The pattern of Coomassie blue-staining proteins in the membranes of these species was also very similar to that of the human erythrocyte membrane. However, the glycoproteins in the marsupial erythrocyte membranes were markedly less conspicuous than those of the human erythrocyte membrane. Furthermore, the mobilities of the glycoproteins from the marsupials were different from those of the human erythrocyte membrane.

Distribution and abundance of kangaroos (Marsupialia: Macropodidae) at the time of European contact: Victoria.

1992 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 81
Author(s):  
R.D. Barker ◽  
G. Caughley
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Dominant Species ◽  
Turn Of The Century ◽  
Forest Clearing ◽  
European Contact ◽  
European Settlement ◽  
Red Kangaroo ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Historic Data

The dominant species of large macropods in Victoria are the Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Macropus giganteus) and the Southern (= Western) Grey Kangaroo (M. fuliginosus). On the limited historic data available there is no indication that their ranges have changed since European settlement. The Red Kangaroo (M. rufus) was restricted to the northwest corner of the state, then as now. Moderate densities of Grey Kangaroos at settlement increased under forest clearing, probably peaking about the mid-nineteenth century. With intensification of farming and associated heavy hunting they declined again to establish by about the turn of the century the distribution of modera te density that we see today.

The Distribution and Abundance of Kangaroos in relation to Environment in Western Australia

1983 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 435 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Short ◽  
G Caughley ◽  
D Grice ◽  
B Brown
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Arable Land ◽  
The State ◽  
Winter Rainfall ◽  
The North ◽  
Red Kangaroo ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Almost All

Red and western grey kangaroos were surveyed from the air in Western Australia during the winter of 1981. The area covered, 1 528 000 km2 or 61% of the State, excluded only the Kimberleys in the north and the Gibson and Great Sandy Deserts of the interior. Hence almost all kangaroo range within the State was surveyed, to provide an estimate of 980 000 reds and 436 000 greys. Densities were much lower than those of the eastern States. Red kangaroos were most abundant in mulga shrubland, chenopod shrubland and tussock grassland, and least abundant in hummock grassland. Densities were associated strongly with land-use categories, being high in areas used for extensive sheep grazing and low in vacant Crown Land and arable land. In contrast to reds the western grey kangaroos were confined to the south and west of the state, their distribution being related more directly to climate than to vegetation or land use. They live in the winter rainfall zone. We suggest that their restricted breeding season results in peak nutritional demands associated with lactation, and hence energy requirements, being synchronized with the spring flush of pasture following winter rains. Approximately 14% of the red kangaroo and 8% of the western grey kangaroo populations in Western Australia were harvested legally in 1981.

scholarly journals Male germline development in the tammar wallaby, Macropus eugenii

Reproduction ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 161 (3) ◽  
pp. 333-341
Author(s):  
Teruhito Ishihara ◽  
Oliver W Griffith ◽  
Gerard A Tarulli ◽  
Marilyn B Renfree
Keyword(s):  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Germ Cell ◽  
Germ Cells ◽  
Evolutionary History ◽  
Tammar Wallaby ◽  
Mitotic Arrest ◽  
Germline Development ◽  
Macropus Eugenii ◽  
Male Germline ◽  
Cell Mitosis

Male germ cells undergo two consecutive processes – pre-spermatogenesis and spermatogenesis – to generate mature sperm. In eutherian mammals, epigenetic information such as DNA methylation is dynamically reprogrammed during pre-spermatogenesis, before and during mitotic arrest. In mice, by the time germ cells resume mitosis, the majority of DNA methylation is reprogrammed. The tammar wallaby has a similar pattern of germ cell global DNA methylation reprogramming to that of the mouse during early pre-spermatogenesis. However, early male germline development in the tammar or in any marsupial has not been described previously, so it is unknown whether this is a general feature regulating male germline development or a more recent phenomenon in mammalian evolutionary history. To answer this, we examined germ cell nuclear morphology and mitotic arrest during male germline development in the tammar wallaby (Macropus eugenii), a marsupial that diverged from mice and humans around 160 million years ago. Tammar pro-spermatogonia proliferated after birth and entered mitotic arrest after day 30 postpartum (pp). At this time, they began moving towards the periphery of the testis cords and their nuclear size increased. Germ cells increased in number after day 100 pp which is the time that DNA methylation is known to be re-established in the tammar. This is similar to the pattern observed in the mouse, suggesting that resumption of germ cell mitosis and the timing of DNA methylation reprogramming are correlated and conserved across mammals and over long evolutionary timescales.

Endoparasites of an insular subspecies of the western grey kangaroo, Macropus fuliginosus

2004 ◽  
Vol 52 (6) ◽  
pp. 623 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. S. Webley ◽  
I. Beveridge ◽  
G. Coulson
Keyword(s):  
Parasite Species ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Bimodal Distribution ◽  
Tammar Wallaby ◽  
Gastrointestinal Parasites ◽  
Original Population ◽  
Core Species ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo

This study examined parasites occurring in the insular subspecies of the western grey kangaroo, Macropus fuliginosus fuliginosus, from Kangaroo Island. A total of 25 kangaroos from three sites were examined for gastrointestinal parasites. Fifteen parasite species were identified: eight in the stomach, five in the small intestine and two in the large intestine. Parasite prevalence showed a bimodal distribution: 'satellite' species were predominantly cestodes, whereas 'core' species were nematodes. There was no evidence of co-speciation in the 12 parasite species occurring in both island and mainland western grey kangaroo subspecies. M. f. fuliginosus harboured fewer parasite species than M. f. melanops from the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia. This might be related to parasite prevalence and the intensity of infection in the original population of kangaroos. Alternatively, it might be related to differing environmental conditions or to chance. Host switching was evident, with Cloacina kartana, which has been recorded as a common parasite of the tammar wallaby, Macropus eugenii, also occurring in some kangaroos.

Ontogenetic scaling of the gastrointestinal tract of a marsupial foregut fermenter, the western grey kangaroo Macropus fuliginosus melanops

2021 ◽  
Vol 191 (2) ◽  
pp. 371-383
Author(s):  
Adam J. Munn ◽  
Edward P. Snelling ◽  
David A. Taggart ◽  
Roger S. Seymour
Keyword(s):  
Gastrointestinal Tract ◽  
Grey Kangaroo ◽  
Western Grey Kangaroo
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