Not afraid of the scorching heat but afraid of the cold
The true appearance will appear in the morning and evening
"The first time the child has grown up to see kangaroos . I was very excited to see their long legs and tails, and I clamored to come next time." In the early morning of September 10, citizen Guo Tian brought his 6-year-old son to the zoo. The two kangaroos in the herbivorous area firmly attracted the attention of the children.
It is the season when the tigers are rampant. In the Sanming Zoo, the animals are hiding lazily in the shade to cool off. In the herbivorous area, the two new long-legged animals attracted many tourists to stop, and they were newly introduced kangaroos. Will the kangaroos adapt to life here? What do they eat every day?
City Zoo introduced two kangaroos in mid-August this year, with a male and a female. The scientific name is big red kangaroo , also known as red kangaroo , which is the largest type of in the Kangaroo family. There are black whisker marks on both sides of the nostrils, which is a unique feature of red kangaroos. The body color of male kangaroos is red or red-brown, and the body color of females is blue-gray.
"These two kangaroos are so different in size? The big one is as tall as me, and the small one is only about the same size as my son." Looking at the jumping kangaroo, Guo Tian asked a question.
In fact, there will be a gap in the size of the male and female kangaroos themselves. The male kangaroos introduced this time are over 2 years old, while the female kangaroos are only 1 year old, so it is not surprising that the size difference between the two kangaroos is nearly double.
You can see kangaroos jumping lively in the early morning, and Guo Tian can actually be considered lucky. On weekdays, the kangaroos lazily lying under the awning , and they didn't move for a long time. Why is this?
"This is related to their living habits. Kangaroos are usually quiet and docile." The breeder Zheng Lingxizi said that the big red kangaroos are timid and alert by nature. They often move at night or in the early morning, sleep more during the day or rest in other ways, especially in the hot summer and autumn weather. The big red kangaroos will go out to find food and drink water when the weather is cool in the morning and evening, and hide in the shade to rest when the day is hot.
Since the night city zoo is closed, if citizens want to see the lively and active side of kangaroos, they can choose to visit the zoo in the early morning or in the evening according to their living habits. There is a difference in temperature
Environmental special transformation
Kangaroo's hometown is in Australia. As the world's largest marsupial animal, the giant red kangaroo lives in tropical savanna, deserts and temperate forests.
and Sanming is located in a low-latitude coastal area, and the climate is a Central Subtropical Monsoon Climate Zone, warm and humid. Can the big red kangaroo adapt to the climate here when he comes to Sanming?
"The big red kangaroo is not afraid of the heat. It only needs some heating equipment in winter. We are already planning to build an insulation room." Zhang Yijian, the director of the city zoo, said that the park has freed up about 50 square meters of space for the two big red kangaroos and equipped it with a sunshade. A glass insulation room will be built next month, and some electric heating facilities will be installed inside to allow the kangaroos to spend the winter safely.
In the area where the big red kangaroo lives, the ground is laid with layered three-piece soil . It has a certain strength and water resistance. It is not only durable, but also can adapt to the amount of exercise required by the big red kangaroo. At the back of the breeding area is a sand pool completely covered by a sunshade for the big red kangaroos to play.
"The living environment of the kangaroos is quite good, but they are good at jumping. Will the railings here be a little short? What if they jump out?" After visiting the big red kangaroo, citizen Xiao Liu raised his concerns.
As a large animal that runs by jumping, the big red kangaroo is very good at jumping. When moving slowly, each jump is about 1.2 meters to 1.9 meters, and each jump can reach more than 9 meters when running. The short-term escape speed can reach 50 kilometers to 64 kilometers per hour, making it the fastest among kangaroo animals.
In the park, the living area of the Big Red Kangaroo is separated by an internal fence about 2 meters high and a 1.5-meter-high tourist guardrail. In the eyes of tourists, such a height is far from enough.
"The big red kangaroo jumped far, but it actually didn't jump high."Breeder Zheng Lingxizi introduced that with the existing fence height of the park, it is difficult for the big red kangaroo to jump out of the breeding area, and the sexual maturity time of the big red kangaroo is about 2 years old. The two kangaroos have just reached their maturity, and their jumping ability is not that strong, so there is no need to increase the fence for the time being.
All kinds of medicines are available
Recipe is specially customized
As a unique animal in Australia, the big red kangaroo comes to Sanming. What should I do if I get sick?
"The two kangaroos introduced this time were purchased from Fuzhou Zoo. They have been bred once, and are more suitable for the domestic environment. "Zhang Yijian said that the common diseases that are prone to red kangaroos are similar to other herbivores, and the antibacterial and anti-inflammatory drugs and trauma medicines are all equipped in the zoo.
Among the diseases that are prone to red kangaroos, one is different from other herbivores, which is oral disease. Kangaroo oral disease refers to the diseases such as submandibular swelling, loose teeth of shedding, gingival erosion, ulcer bleeding, etc. that occur in the oral cavity of the kangaroo. This is a common disease of kangaroos. Once dental disease occurs, it will not only affect its eating, but also cause suppuration of teeth in severe cases. The dental disease is easy to recur, and there is no regularity to follow.
"We will pay attention to the diet of kangaroos and whether they drool when patrolling the hall every day. "Breeder Zheng Lingxizi said that the dental disease of the big red kangaroo mainly relies on prevention. It is necessary to observe the physical condition of the kangaroos, let them eat essential ingredients in the morning and eat more foods such as fruits and melons to clean their mouths in the afternoon.
In order to ensure the health of the two big red kangaroos, their recipes have also been specially customized.
When they were in the Fuzhou Zoo, the feed of the two big red kangaroos was mainly forage, steamed buns, fruits, etc. After coming to the Sanming Zoo, They are unwilling to eat the forage. According to the Fuzhou recipe, they made steamed buns for them, and these two big red kangaroos were unwilling to "appreciate their faces" to taste.
At present, elephant grass is the main forage for big red kangaroos, but because the edges are sharp, the breeder needs to cut it before feeding it.
"We replaced more than 30 local grass species, and finally determined elephant grass and rye grass as the forage for big red kangaroos. "Zhang Yijian introduced that since forage is a necessary daily feed and the amount of feeding is large, the forage will deteriorate through express transportation, and can only be selected among local grass species. Among the two finalized grass species, the edges of the elephant grass are sharp and easy to scratch the mouth of the big red kangaroo. The breeder will cut it and feed it. The elephant grass grows in summer and autumn. In order to keep the kangaroos food, rye grass has begun to grow in autumn and winter.
Source: Sanming Media Center
