BIAN3011 Macropods

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BIAN3011Macropods
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Diagnostic feature of Macropodoidea -
Masseteric canal a cavity in the jaw body to
receive deep fibres of masseter muscle
In potoroids and hypsiprymnodontids, it goes
further into the jaw body than in macropodids
N.B. Long mandibular diastema
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Classification of Macropododidea

• Family Hypsiprymnodontidae
• Musky rat-kangaroo
• Family Potoroidae
• Rat-kangaroos
• Family Macropodidae
• Subfamily Sthenurinae
• Short-faced kangaroos
• Subfamily Macropodinae
• True kangaroos and wallabies

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The only living member of the Hypsiprymnodontidae
Hypsiprymnodon moschatus
Musky rat-kangaroo Rainforests of Far North
Queensland Only macropod to have a hallux and
(small) I2
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Potoroidae vs. Macropodidae
Shape of lower incisors
Onychogalea
Size of upper canine
M
P
Bettongia
Size of masseteric canal
Relative lengths of upper incisors
Balbaroo (Miocene)
P
Wallabia
M
Bettongia
P
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Representatives of the four genera of Potoroidae
(rat-kangaroos)
Aepyprymnus rufescens Rufous bettong
Bettongia penicillata Brush-tailed bettong
Small species living in thick cover, feeding
mostly on under-ground fungi
Potorous longipes Long-footed potoroo
Caloprymnus campestris Desert rat-kangaroo
(extinct)
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Potoroid skull Bettongia lesueur Burrowing
bettong
Large P3 form secators, with strong vertical
grooves
Molars decrease in size from front to
back (characteristic of all except Aepyprymnus)
Large palatine vacuities, of course
Large auditory bullae
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Premolar replacement in potoroids
Substantial deciduous molars, somewhat
secator-like, are replaced by a single huge
permanent premolar
milk molars
Corpus deepened under M1
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Family Macropodidae

• Subfamily Sthenurinae
• Mainly giant extinct genera, members of the
  megafauna
• One living genus, Lagostrophus
• Subfamily Macropodinae
• Living (and some extinct) kangaroos and wallabies

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Sthenurus extinct short-faced kangaroo
Lower incisors are more upright than other
macropods, wear from tip because they occlude on
uppers
groove
Sharp ridge
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Giant extinct sthenurines
Procoptodon reared 4 metres high
Sthenurus skeleton (modern Grey Kangaroo skull
lying at its feet). Giant sthenurines has a
single toe.
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Lagostrophus fasciatus Banded hare-wallaby The
only living sthenurine (and the smallest)
Formerly lived all over the S. half of WA and the
Nullarbor Eliminated from mainland by
foxes Survives only on two Shark Bay islands
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Genera of Macropodinae

• Dorcopsis New Guinea forest wallabies
• Dendrolagus Tree kangaroos
• Lagorchestes Hare-wallabies
• Onychogalea Nail-tail wallabies
• Petrogale Rock wallabies
• Setonix Quokka
• Thylogale Pademelons
• Wallabia Swamp wallaby
• Macropus Large wallabies, kangaroos

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Tooth replacement in Macropus rufus(red kangaroo)
dm2 dm3
Deciduous molars shed, replaced by a single
(small) permanent premolar Mesial drift is
intense, causes P3, then molars one by one, to be
shed. Usually P3 is shed at or before the time
of eruption of M4
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Dentition and dental replacement, like many other
characters, vary partly as a function of
diet. Smallest species (here, Potoroidae) with
soft diets have enlarged secator premolars and
bunodont molars, and do not shed any permanent
cheekteeth. Larger ones (browsers) have smaller
secators and shed their molars but not their
premolars. Largest species (grazers) have small
premolars which are not secators, and shed both
premolars and molars. They have convex alveolar
margin.
Macropus rufus
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Dorcopsis macleayi Macleays dorcopsis (New
Guinea forest wallaby). The genus is not found in
Australia.
Position of tail
Dendrolagus lumholtzi Lumholtzs tree
kangaroo. The genus is mainly New Guinean in
Australia, only in rainforests of FNQ
Huge bear-like paws Hindfeet move independently
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Lagorchestus conspicillatus Spectacled hare
wallaby Tropical grasslands
Onychogalea fraenata Bridled nail-tail
wallaby Scrub country of S.Qld., W. NSW
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Petrogale rock wallabies
Petrogale lateralis
About 20 species, found all over Australia
wherever there is steep rocky country
Petrogale mareeba
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Setonix and Thylogale
Thylogale stigmata Red-legged pademelon Rainforest
of FNQ Genus is found all along eastern
seaboard, and in NG
Setonix brachyurus Quokka Southwest of WA,
especially Rottnest I.
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Wallabia swamp wallaby
Wallabia bicolor The only species in the
genus Common in gullies and moist areas of
eastern Australia
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Genus Macropus

• Subgenus Notamacropus
• 8 species of wallabies
• This subgenus is probably paraphyletic
• Subgenus Osphranter
• 4 species of wallaroos and red kangaroo
• Subgenus Macropus
• 2 species of grey kangaroos

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Small wallabies
Macropus parma Parma wallaby Illawarra region
Macropus eugenii Tammar wallaby S. SW.
Macropus irma Brush wallaby S.W. of WA
Macropus greyi Toolache S.E. of SA Extinct since
1927
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Medium-sized wallabies
Macropus parryi Whiptail or Pretty-face
wallaby S.E.Qld
Macropus dorsalis Black-striped wallaby S.E.Qld
and N.NSW
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Large wallabies
Macropus rufogriseus Red-necked
wallaby S.E.Australia including Tasmania
Macropus agilis Agile or Sandy wallaby Tropical
grasslands, including S.E. of PNG
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Osphranter
Macropus bernardus Woodwards wallaroo Top End
Macropus rufus Red kangaroo Plains country
Macropus antilopinus Antilopine kangaroo Top End
Macropus robustus Common wallaroo Hilly country
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Macropus Grey kangaroos
Macropus giganteus Eastern grey kangaroo
Macropus fuliginosus Western grey kangaroo
Mainly eucalypt woodland species their
distributions overlap in western NSW and
N.W.Victoria
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Dental sequence in M.fuliginosus
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Curved alveolar margin in Macropus and Petrogale,
not in other macropods
Petrogale sp.
Macropus fuliginosus
Dental replacement in Petrogale
Setonix brachyurus
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Skulls of Macropus fuliginosus (left) and M.irma
(right).
I3 has 2 grooves
I3 has one groove
P3 less reduced
P3 very reduced
Midlinks in molars strong weak
Palatine vacuities fuse stay with age
open
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The grooves in I3
Petrogale sp.
Petrogale, Thylogale and most Macropus of
subgenus Notamacropus have a single notch.
Subgenus Osphranter have at most a single, poorly
marked notch. Subgenus Macropus have two notches