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Question:
Why do kangaroos have pouches?


Replies:
Kangaroo pouches serve as the location where a developing young kangaroo grows from about the size of a kidney bean to its size when it can move about on its own. The kangaroo begins its life as a fertilized egg much as the same way as humans, but, as mentioned above, when the developing 'fetus' is the size of about a kidney bean, it migrates, through what is really a dangerous journey, from its mother's uterus to the pouch where it continues development. The young kangaroo will mature there, and it is often a humorous sight to see basically a fully developed small kangaroo riding in its mother's pouch.

Ric

Thanks for using NEWTON!

Kangaroos are marsupials, belonging to the order _Marsupialia_ of the class _Mammalia_. All marsupials have pouches called marsupiums and do not have placentas like other mammals. Can you think of a marsupial native to North America?

Jade Hawk


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