"Down under 'Down Under': Kangaroo Island " a Kangaroo Island Travel Page by Quero

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FAQ: Would the *real* K.I. please stand up?

Since there are *seven* Kangaroo Islands (plus one North Kangaroo Island) listed in VTs place names, all in Australia, this is a valid question. Every one of these actually exists, according to the Australian government's geosciences department, and VT even missed one (East Kangaroo Island, Tasmania).

But more to the point, the particular Kangaroo Island most people visit for tourism is the one in South Australia, not far from Adelaide. Just a short hop, really, from the mainland.

Click the map to enlarge so you can see where the little dot of the island is in relation to the mainland.

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FAQ: Why is it called Kangaroo Island?

Well, there's one obvious reason...

Yes, there are kangaroos on Kangaroo Island, an endemic subspecies of the gray kangaroo, and there are also wallabies. (As far as I can tell, there's not a whole lot of difference between one and the other--sort of like the difference between a horse and a pony--one is smaller, but they are essentially the same animal.)

You can see kangaroos all over the place--lazing in the sun during the daytime, and out forraging at night, mainly at dusk.

So why isn't the entire continent of Australia called Kangaroo Island (I mean, aren't there kangaroos on the mainland, too?) Well, it seems that when the island was "discovered," the crew of the sailing ship that made landfall slaughtered, roasted, and feasted on kangaroos (sick of fish, fish, fish at every meal, I guess). They must have eaten well, since the name stuck.

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FAQ: So, if I can see kangaroos anyplace, why...?

Ahhhhh. You must understand that it's not *just* kangaroos. There are all kinds of critters to observe and point your camera at, including sea lions, koalas, echidnas, emus, goannas, and penguins. Take a look at my travel tips to get glimpses of some of the ones I saw.

In adddition to the wild life, there is the wild landscape with its coastline and amazing breakers, wind-carved stone, and dunes. You'll find examples in my travel tips.