While ‘joey’ can refer to any young animal in Australia, it generally refers to baby kangaroos.
In Australia, any young animal can be called a joey, although the term is often used in discussions of marsupials and, more specifically, kangaroos. A baby kangaroo is considered a joey until it reaches fully independent adulthood, which can take up to a year after birth. When used outside of Australia, joey is understood by most people to mean a young kangaroo.
In Australia, any young animal can be called a joey, but it usually refers to a baby kangaroo.
Kangaroos have an interesting reproductive cycle. The joey is actually born in an embryonic state and is forced by his mother to crawl into the pouch to nurse. The joey clings so tightly to the pouch that trying to remove it can kill the joey and damage the mother’s nipples. Over the next eight to 10 months, Joey develops into a recognizable baby kangaroo, and after about eight months, he begins to climb out of his pouch to investigate the world, always staying close to his mother and continuing to nurse until he is one. year old.
The kangaroo mother, or flying mother, may contract her pouch muscles to keep the joey secure while in motion, or release her muscles to release the joey. The mother kangaroo regularly cleans the pouch, cleaning around the kangaroo when it is very young and tipping it over to clean when it is older. One of the most curious aspects of the kangaroo mating cycle is that the female mates again a few days after giving birth, but the resulting embryo is in a state of ecstasy. If the joey dies, the embryo will develop into a new joey: otherwise the embryo will remain in embryonic diapause for up to a year, waiting for the pouch to become available.
Kangaroos are perhaps the most famous Australian animal, and there are over 40 known species, from tiny red kangaroos to giant red kangaroos. The large, inquisitive herbivores have faced clashes with humans, as they are destructive to both gardens and fences, although some Australians keep kangaroos as pets, often keeping them as young too young to be tameable. Raising a joey can be difficult for the inexperienced as they have special dietary needs and must also be kept warm and safe. Most wildlife authorities in Australia recommend that a joey be taken to a wildlife center for care if found without its parents, and people interested in keeping one as a pet should obtain permits as they are Illegal without a license.