NewsU.S. and the World

Actions

New study finds kangaroos can ask humans for help

Australia Wildlife
Posted at 12:44 PM, Dec 16, 2020
and last updated 2020-12-16 16:53:49-05

Researchers from the University of Roehampton in London and the University of Sydney found that kangaroos know how to communicate with humans if they need help.

According to the study published in the journal Biology Letters on Wednesday, out of the 11 kangaroos researched, 10 of them gazed at researchers when they were unable to access food during an unsolvable task. Out of those 10, nine of the marsupials would alternate their gaze from the object to the human.

In some cases, researchers said, the kangaroos would sometimes even nudge or scratched them to ask for help, said co-author Alexandra Green, according to the University of Sydney.

Before the study, researchers thought that only domesticated animals, like dogs, cats, wolves, horses, and sometimes goats, were capable of communicating with humans with an enhanced form of communication.

Officials said the study's kangaroos were from various zoos in Australia and are familiar with people but are not considered domesticated.