© Colette3/Shutterstock.com

The wallaby is a medium-sized mammal that looks like a kangaroo. Wallabies are marsupials, which means that they carry their young in a pouch. There are several species of wallabies, and they belong to the kangaroo family, Macropodidae. They are found chiefly in Australia.

Wallabies are separated into several categories according to certain characteristics. The brush wallabies, for example, live mainly in brushlands, while the rock wallabies live among rocks. The three species of nail-tailed wallabies are named for a horny growth on the tail tip, and the two species of hare wallabies have the movements and some of the habits of hares.

In general, wallabies are about 18 to 41 inches (45 to 105 centimeters) in length, with tails that are 13 to 30 inches (33 to 75 centimeters) long. The dwarf wallaby is the smallest known member of the kangaroo family. Its length is about 18 inches (45 centimeters) from nose to tail, and it weighs about 3.5 pounds (1.6 kilograms).

Wallabies are mostly brown or gray in color, and they may have stripes, patches, or other markings. For example, two of the brush wallabies are distinctly marked: the red-necked wallaby (Macropus rufogriseus) has a reddish neck and shoulders, and the pretty-faced wallaby, or whiptail (M. elegans, or M. parryi), has distinctive cheek marks. The nail-tailed wallabies are striped at the shoulder.

Wallabies are herbivores, meaning that they eat plants but not meat. Some wallabies form groups, called mobs, of 30 or more animals that roam and feed together.

Female wallabies usually bear only one young per pregnancy. Like other female marsupials, the mother wallaby has a pouch. The tiny baby, known as a joey, climbs into the pouch to nurse and will stay there until it is able to move around and find food on its own.