Stirling's Short-Faced Roo
Sthenurus stirlingi
🦘
Chordata
Mammalia
Diprotodontia
Macropodoidea
Macropodidae
Sthenurus
Sthenurus stirlingi
The Giant Short-Faced Kangaroo — Sthenurus stirlingi, a Pleistocene titan of Australia, was a thick-limbed browser that stood tall on its hind legs, surveying Ice Age scrublands like a muscular, plant-eating sentinel.
Description
This species was one of the largest members of the kangaroo family, distinguished by its robust body, single large toe per foot, and reduced forelimbs adapted for holding branches while browsing. Unlike modern kangaroos, which are built for speed and bounding gaits, Sthenurus had a more upright posture and likely moved with deliberate, bipedal strides — somewhat like a human.
The skull of Sthenurus stirlingi reveals a short, deep snout and high-set eyes, an adaptation for selective browsing on shrubs and tree leaves rather than grazing. It lived in open woodland and semi-arid habitats across inland Australia, from Lake Callabonna to the Darling Downs, often alongside other megafaunal herbivores such as Diprotodon and Zygomaturus.
Quick Facts
Max Mass
Shoulder Height
Standing Height
Length
Diet
Trophic Level
240
1.6
2.5
2.5
kg
m
m
m
Mixed Feeder
Omnivores – Balanced
Hunt History
No direct kill sites exist for Sthenurus stirlingi, but its disappearance coincides with the arrival of humans in Australia (~50–45,000 years BP). Early Aboriginal peoples may have hunted it opportunistically using fire drives or ambushes at waterholes. Its large size and predictable habits made it vulnerable to even low-intensity hunting pressure combined with increasing aridity.
Archaeological and fossil associations:
Lake Callabonna, South Australia — Nearly complete skeletons preserved in clay beds (~50,000–40,000 years BP), offering insights into posture and gait.
Cuddie Springs, New South Wales — Late Pleistocene sediments containing Sthenurus bones and stone artifacts (~40,000 years BP).
Naracoorte Caves, South Australia — Cave deposits preserving Sthenurus skulls and postcranial bones with other extinct megafauna (~45,000 years BP).
Time & Range
Extinction Status
Globally Extinct
Extinction Date
Temporal Range
Region
40000
BP
Late Pleistocene
Australia
Wiki Link
Fat Analysis
Fatness Profile:
Medium
Fat %
5
Est. Renderable Fat
12
kg
Targeted Organs
Visceral & subcutaneous
Adipose Depots
Visceral/subcutaneous (general)
Preferred Cuts
Visceral depot
Hunt Difficulty (x/5)
3