A hybrid (juvenile) of a red kangaroo and an eastern grey kangaroo, Rothschild Museum, Tring
Macropod hybrids are hybrids of animals within the family Macropodidae, which includes kangaroos and wallabies. Several macropod hybrids have been experimentally bred, including:
| Male | Female | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Eastern wallaroo, Osphranter robustus robustus | Red kangaroo, O. rufus | Infertile female* |
| Swamp wallaby, Wallabia bicolor | Red-necked wallaby, M. rufogriseus | Sterile male† |
| Agile wallaby, M. agilis | Red-necked wallaby, M. rufogriseus | Sterile male† |
| Tammar wallaby, M. eugenii | Black-striped wallaby, M. dorsalis | Sterile male† |
| Western grey kangaroo, M. fuliginosus | Eastern grey kangaroo, M. giganteus | Sterile male and fertile female |
| Red kangaroo, O. rufus‡ | Eastern grey kangaroo, M. giganteus | |
| Tammar wallaby, M. eugenii | Parma wallaby, M. parma | |
| Tammar wallaby, M. eugenii | Pademelon, Thylogale species |
- * May have been so poorly fertile as to be considered sterile
- † Although the males had testes, they did not produce sperm and some were found to have Y-chromosome abnormalities.
- ‡ In-vitro fertilization used
Some hybrids between similar species have been achieved by housing males of one species and females of the other together to limit the choice of a mate. To create a "natural" macropod hybrid, young animals of one species have been transferred to the pouch of another so as to imprint into them the other species. In-vitro fertilization has also been used and the fertilized egg implanted into a female of either species.[1]
References
- ↑ "Hybrid Marsupials". MessyBeast.com.
- Poole, W. E. (1975). "Reproduction in the Two Species of Grey Kangaroos, Macropus giganteus Shaw and M. fuliginosus (Desmarest): II. Gestation, Parturition and Pouch Life". Australian Journal of Zoology. 23 (3): 333–353. doi:10.1071/ZO9750333.
- Smith, M. J.; Hayman, D. L.; Hope, R. M. (1979). "Observations on the chromosomes and reproductive systems of four macropodine interspecific hybrids". Australian Journal of Zoology. 27 (6): 959–972. doi:10.1071/ZO9790959.
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