Lumhotz's Tree-kangaroos

Petersen Creek in Yungaburra has become a well known Platypus viewing site but now its reputation for tree-kangaroos is soaring.

A week ago I went along the creek looking for the Barking Owls which often hang out there. I was disappointed in my quest but very happy to find five Lumholtz's Tree-Kangaroos. The big male was in too difficult a position to photograph but the two females with joeys at heel sat nicely for me.

If you come across tree-roos please do not approach so closely that they jump or slide to the ground. This is what they do when they are upset and then on the ground the can fall prey to feral and domestic dogs.

Baby Tree-Kangaroo Strikes out

Imagine learning to walk in the trees? "It's OK Mum, I'm a big girl now!"

This delightful series was sent to me by my friend Sandy Carroll. She often sees Lumholtz's Tree-Kangaroos outside her bedroom window. Being able to watch then behave naturally is a rare privilege as these are shy creatures which are very aware of strangers in their forest."OK, now I've got this far what happens next?

"If I grab this vine over here will that help?"'Guess not!"

"Up sounds good."You can see that when climbing a vine, tree-roos use their arms to do most of the work and their hind feet act as clamps to stop them slipping down.

At my site the numbers have dropped since Cyclone Larry even though all my habituated animals survived the blow. there has been some social disruption with Jill being displaced by Sarah. I had never previously heard of a breeding female loosing her territory to another. Unfortunately Sarah does not sit in the open as often as Jill used to. Spider jumped out of a low tree when we were watching him last week. He went into a vine tangle so I am a bit worried about his health. We were not very close to him but as we had not been seeing him much lately, he may have been worried about us. Normally tree-kangaroos will jump if they feel threatened so it is best to give them plenty of space if they are not up high.