Musky Rat-kangaroo (Hypsiprymnodon moschatus)

The Musky Rat-kangaroo (Hypsiprymnodon moschatus) is a small marsupial found only in the rainforests of northeastern Australia. First described in the later 19th century, the only other species are known from fossil specimens. They are similar in appearance to potoroos and bettongs, but are not as closely related. Their omnivorous diet is known to include materials such as fruit and fungi, as well as small animals such as insects and other invertebrates. The local Aboriginal name for the species is durrgim yuri.

The species only occurs in the northeastern part of the continent. They may be locally common in remaining areas of extensive rainforest and can occur at high and low elevations. The distribution range extends from west of Ingham, Queensland at Mt. Lee to Mt. Amos south of Cooktown. They are found in low altitude rainforests, such as Cape Tribulation and Mission Beach, and within the montane habitat of the Carbine, Atherton and Windsor tableland regions. The population density of H. moschatus is from 1.40 to 4.50 animals per hectare.

The below images are of an individual in Kuranda, Queensland in the Daintree Forest.

Agile Wallaby (Notamacropus agilis)

The Agile Wallaby (Notamacropus agilis), also known as the sandy wallaby, is a species of wallaby found in northern Australia and southern New Guinea. It is the most common wallaby in north Australia. The agile wallaby is a sandy colour, becoming paler below. It is sometimes solitary and at other times sociable and grazes on grasses and other plants. The agile wallaby is not considered threatened.

The agile wallaby is found in northern Australia, Papua New Guinea and the Indonesian province of Papua. It is the most common wallaby over much of the north of Australia. In northern Australia and down the eastern coast of Queensland it is quite common, and there are isolated populations in southeastern Queensland around Coomera, Jacobs Well and Hope Island. It is also present, though not common, on Stradbroke Island and on Woogoompah Island in the Southern Moreton Bay Islands, and it may still be present on Peel Island. In Australia its typical habitats are dry open woodland, heaths, dunes and grassland.[7] It is often present in the vicinity of rivers and billabongs. When grass is in short supply, it sometimes browses on shrubs or moves onto agricultural land, including sugar cane plantations.

Notamacropus agilis - Seen in Kuranda Area Queensland as well as Kakadu National Park

Whiptail Wallaby (Notamacropus parryi)

The Whiptail Wallaby (Notamacropus parryi), also known as the pretty-faced wallaby, is a species of wallaby found in eastern Australia. It is locally common from Cooktown in Queensland to near Grafton in New South Wales.

It is distinguished by its paler colouring and white stripe under its face. Their faces have a chocolate-brown fur covering their muzzle. They are black and white on its chest and the rest is grey to brown fur. Males weigh from 14 to 26 kg (31 to 57 lb) and stand at a height from 70 to 93 cm (28 to 37 in). Females weigh from 7 to 15 kg (15 to 33 lb) and stand at a height from 65 to 75 cm (26 to 30 in).

The whiptail wallaby lives in grasslands and woodlands particularly on hills or slopes. It is primarily a grazer. In grasslands, the whiptail wallaby primarily eats kangaroo grass. It also eats monocots in nearby creeks. It is primarily a diurnal species. It is active in the morning and late in the afternoon but continues into “to an unknown extent during the night”.

The whiptail wallaby is a sociable species, sometimes coming together in mobs of up to 50. They live in a home range of up to 110 hectares (270 acres). The mob usually gathers in the afternoon during feeding. Some home ranges may overlap with others and the members of the mob take turns resting and guarding. The mobs contain all ages and sexes throughout the year, but seldom if ever are all members of a mob together at one time. Mobs often split into continually changing subgroups of fewer than 10 animals. Whiptail wallaby mobs have a linear hierarchy that is determined by ritualized “pawing”, which is non-violent. They may also pull grass. Whiptail wallabies will cough to show submission. 

Notamacropus parryi - in the Daintree Forest area

Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Macropus giganteus)

The Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Macropus giganteus) is a marsupial found in the eastern third of Australia, with a population of several million. It is also known as the great grey kangaroo and the forester kangaroo. Although a big eastern grey male typically weighs around 66 kg (146 lb) and stands almost 2 m (6 ft 7 in) tall, the scientific name, Macropus giganteus (gigantic large-foot), is misleading: the red kangaroo of the semi-arid inland is larger, weighing up to 90 kg (200 lb).

Although the red is better known, the eastern grey is the kangaroo most often encountered in Australia, due to its adaptability. Few Australians visit the arid interior of the continent, while many live in and around the major cities of the southern and eastern coast, from where it is usually only a short drive to the remaining pockets of near-city bushland where kangaroos can be found without much difficulty. The eastern grey prefers open grassland with areas of bush for daytime shelter and mainly inhabits the wetter parts of Australia. It also inhabits coastal areas, woodlands, sub-tropical forests, mountain forests, and inland scrubs.

Like all kangaroos, it is mainly nocturnal and crepuscular, and is mostly seen early in the morning, or as the light starts to fade in the evening. In the middle of the day, kangaroos rest in the cover of the woodlands and eat there but then come out in the open to feed on the grasslands in large numbers. The eastern grey kangaroo is predominantly a grazer, eating a wide variety of grasses, whereas some other species (e.g. the red kangaroo) include significant amounts of shrubs in their diet.

Macropus giganteus - in reserve two hours north of Melbourne in 1976 (Captive)

Common Wallaroo (Osphranter robustus)

The Common Wallaroo (Osphranter robustus), also known as the euro, hill wallaroo, or simply wallaroo, is a species of macropod. The word euro is particularly applied to one subspecies (O. r. erubescens). The eastern wallaroo is mostly nocturnal and solitary, and is one of the more common macropods. It makes a loud hissing noise and some of the other subspecies are sexually dimorphic, like most wallaroos.

There are four subspecies:

• the eastern wallaroo (O. r. robustus) – found in eastern Australia; males of this subspecies have dark grey fur, almost resembling the black wallaroo (Osphranter bernardus). Females are lighter, being almost sandy in colour.

• the euro or western wallaroo (O. r. erubescens) – found covering most of the species' remaining range to the west; this subspecies is variable, but mostly brownish, in colour.

• the Barrow Island wallaroo (O. r. isabellinus) – this subspecies is restricted to Barrow Island in Western Australia and is comparatively small. It is uniformly reddish-brown.

• the Kimberley wallaroo (O. r. woodwardi) – this subspecies is found in the Kimberley region of Western Australia and in a band roaming through the Northern Territory. It is the palest of the four subspecies and is a dull brown-grey colour. Kunwinjku of western Arnhem Land call this subspecies ngabudj. They also have separate names for male and female, galkibard and wallaar, respectively. A large male is called ganduki. This animal manages well in areas without permanent water and on a diet of nutrient-poor grasses, but it does need shelter.

The eastern wallaroo (O. r. robustus) — which is dark grey in colour — occupies the eastern slopes of the Great Dividing Range, and the euro (O. r. erubescens) — which is mostly brownish in colour — occupies the land westward.

Osphranter robustus - in Kuranda Golf Course

Red Kangaroo (Osphranter rufus)

The Red Kangaroo (Osphranter rufus) is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest terrestrial mammal native to Australia, and the largest extant marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, except for the more fertile areas, such as southern Western Australia, the eastern and southeastern coasts, and the rainforests along the northern coast

The red kangaroo ranges throughout western and central Australia. Its range encompasses scrubland, grassland, and desert habitats. It typically inhabits open habitats with some trees for shade. Red kangaroos are capable of conserving enough water and selecting enough fresh vegetation to survive in an arid environment. The kangaroo's kidneys efficiently concentrate urine, particularly during summer. Red kangaroo primarily eat green vegetation, particularly fresh grasses and forbs, and can get enough even when most plants look brown and dry. One study of kangaroos in Central Australia found that green grass makes up 75–95% of the diet, with Eragrostis setifolia dominating at 54%. This grass continues to be green into the dry season. Kangaroos also primarily consumed this species, along with Enneapogon avanaceus, in western New South Wales where they comprised much as 21–69% of its diet according to a study. During dry times, kangaroos search for green plants by staying on open grassland and near watercourses. While grasses and forbs are preferred, red kangaroos will also eat certain species of chenopods, like Bassia diacantha and Maireana pyramidata, and will even browse shrubs when its favoured foods are scarce. However, some perennial chenopods, such as round-leaf chenopod Kochia are avoided even when abundant.

At times, red kangaroos congregate in large numbers; in areas with much forage, these groups can number as much as 1,500 individuals. Red kangaroos are mostly crepuscular and nocturnal, resting in the shade during the day. However, they sometimes move about during the day. Red kangaroos rely on small saltbushes or mulga bushes for shelter in extreme heat rather than rocky outcrops or caves. Grazing takes up most of their daily activities. Like most kangaroo species, they are mostly sedentary, staying within a relatively well-defined home range. However, great environmental changes can cause them to travel great distances. Kangaroos in New South Wales have weekly home ranges of 258–560 ha, with the larger areas belonging to adult males. When forage is poor and rainfall patchy, kangaroos will travel 25–30 km to more favourable feeding grounds. Another study of kangaroos in central Australia found that most of them stay close to remaining vegetation but disperse to find fresh plants after it rains. The red kangaroo is too big to be subject to significant non-human predation. They can use their robust legs and clawed feet to defend themselves from attackers with kicks and blows. However, dingoes and eagles can kill and eat joeys. Joeys are thus protected in their mother's pouch. The red kangaroo does have some major predators, like crocodiles. Extinct predators include the marsupial lion, the thylacine, Megalania, the locally extinct komodo dragon and the wonambi. Kangaroos are adept swimmers, and often flee into waterways if threatened by a predator. If pursued into the water, a kangaroo may use its forepaws to hold the predator underwater so as to drown it.

Osphranter rufus - Reserve two hours north of Melbourne in 1976 (Captive)

Mareeba Rock-wallaby (Petrogale mareeba)

The Mareeba Rock-wallaby (Petrogale mareeba) is a rare species of rock-wallaby found around Mareeba in northeastern Queensland, Australia.

The Mareeba rock-wallaby is a member of a group of seven very closely related species within the genus Petrogale, which also includes the Cape York rock-wallaby (P. coenensis), the unadorned rock-wallaby (P. inornata) and the allied rock-wallaby (P. assimilis). It was only identified as a separate species in 1992. Both the common name and the Latin specific epithet reflect the distribution of this species around the settlement of Mareeba.

The Mareeba rock-wallaby is a rare species, found in the highlands west of Cairns from around Mount Garnet to the Mitchell River and Mount Carbine, and inland to Mungana, but only on the tops of a couple of mountain ranges. The animals can be seen in their natural habitat in the Granite Gorge Nature Park, about 60 kilometres (37 mi) inland from Cairns.

Petrogale mareeba - Orhpaned Joey in Daintree Ecolodge (Captive but wild to be released after recovery)

Swamp Wallaby (Wallabia bicolor)

The Swamp Wallaby (Wallabia bicolor) is a small macropod marsupial of eastern Australia. This wallaby is also commonly known as the black wallaby, with other names including black-tailed wallaby, fern wallaby, black pademelon, stinker (in Queensland), and black stinker (in New South Wales) on account of its characteristic swampy odour.

The swamp wallaby is the only living member of the genus Wallabia.

Historic names for the swamp wallaby include Aroe kangaroo and Macropus ualabatus, as well as banggarai in the Dharawal language.

The swamp wallaby is found from the northernmost areas of Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, down the entire east coast and around to southwestern Victoria. It was formerly found throughout southeastern South Australia, but is now rare or absent from that region.

It inhabits thick undergrowth in forests and woodlands, or shelters during the day in thick grass or ferns, emerging at night to feed. Brigalow scrub in Queensland is a particularly favoured habitat.

The species name bicolor comes from the distinct colouring variation, with the typical grey coat of the macropods varied with a dark brown to black region on the back, and light yellow to rufous orange on the chest. A light coloured cheek stripe is usually present, and extremities of the body generally show a darker colouring, except for the tip of the tail, which is often white.

The gait differs from other wallabies, with the swamp wallaby carrying its head low and its tail out straight.

Wallabia bicolor - Reserve two hours north of Melbourne (Captive)