Giant prehistoric kangaroos preferred to ‘chill at home’ and didn’t like to go out much, scientists say

The prehistoric kangaroo protemnodon (shown in an illustration) liked eating rainforest leaves ‘because there were heaps of them around’, an expert says. Photograph: © Capricorn Cave/Atuchin Lawrence Hocknull

Despite their immense size, species of prehistoric giant kangaroos from a site in Queensland were probably homebodies with a surprisingly small range compared with other kangaroos, according to new Australian research.

Protemnodon, which lived on the Australian continent between 5m and 40,000 years ago, was significantly larger than its modern relatives. Some species weighed up to 170kg, making them more than twice as heavy as the largest red kangaroo.