Macropodinae

Macropodinae; Temporal range: Pal. Eocene Oligo. Miocene P P
	Clockwise from top-left: Quokka, Gray dorcopsis, Lumholtz's tree-kangaroo, Red kangaroo, Eastern grey kangaroo, and Yellow-footed rock-wallaby
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Mammalia
Infraclass:	Marsupialia
Order:	Diprotodontia
Family:	Macropodidae
Subfamily:	Macropodinae; Gray, 1821
Genera
	Setonix; † Nombe; Dorcopsini Prideaux & Warburton, 2009 Dorcopsis; †Dorcopsoides; Dorcopsulus; †Watutia; ; Dendrolagini Flannery, 1989 Petrogale; Thylogale; Dendrolagina Prideaux & Warburton, 2023 †Bohra; Dendrolagus; ; ; Macropodini Flannery, 1989 †Baringa; †Congruus; †Kurrabi; Lagorchestes; Macropus; Notamacropus; Onychogalea; Osphranter; †Prionotemnus; †Protemnodon; Wallabia; ;

Macropodinae is a subfamily of marsupials in the family Macropodidae, which includes the kangaroos, wallabies, and related species. The subfamily includes about ten genera and at least 51 species. It includes all living members of the Macropodidae except for the banded hare-wallaby (Lagostrophus fasciatus), the only surviving member of the subfamily Lagostrophinae.^[1]

Different common names are used for macropodines, including "wallaby" and "kangaroo", with the distinction sometimes based exclusively on size. In addition to the well-known kangaroos, the subfamily includes other specialized groups, such as the arboreal tree-kangaroos (Dendrolagus), which have body masses between 4 and 13 kg, and a relatively long prehensile tail.^[2]

Evolution

Measurements of dental macrowear and molar coronal height suggests that macropodins experienced a major evolutionary radiation during the middle of the Pliocene epoch, most likely in response to the substantial grassland expansion occurring then.^[3]

References

^ Wilson, DE, Reeder, DM Mammal Species of the World. Subfamily Macropodinae . Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore, 2005.
^ I. Hume, P. Jarman, M. Renfree and P. Temple-Smith. Fauna of Australia (Walton Richardson, eds.). Vol 1B. 29. Macropodidae Archived 2011-03-20 at the Wayback Machine. pp. 55–56. 1989.
^ Couzens, Aidan M. C.; Prideaux, Gavin J. (5 October 2018). "Rapid Pliocene adaptive radiation of modern kangaroos". Science. 362 (6410): 72–75. doi:10.1126/science.aas8788. ISSN 0036-8075. Retrieved 12 September 2025.

[wyr-1] Wilson, DE, Reeder, DM Mammal Species of the World. Subfamily Macropodinae . Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore, 2005.

[foa-2] I. Hume, P. Jarman, M. Renfree and P. Temple-Smith. Fauna of Australia (Walton Richardson, eds.). Vol 1B. 29. Macropodidae Archived 2011-03-20 at the Wayback Machine. pp. 55–56. 1989.

[3] Couzens, Aidan M. C.; Prideaux, Gavin J. (5 October 2018). "Rapid Pliocene adaptive radiation of modern kangaroos". Science. 362 (6410): 72–75. doi:10.1126/science.aas8788. ISSN 0036-8075. Retrieved 12 September 2025.

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