Animals That Only Walk on Their Hind Legs

Certain creatures other than humans have the ability to use their hind legs. Flightless birds -- which eons ago were four-legged creatures -- depend upon their hind legs to ambulate because their wings -- once front legs -- no longer can sustain flight. Bears and great apes, such as chimps and gorillas, can stand and walk on their hind legs for short distances. A reptile, the frilled lizard, can run on its hind legs to escape prey. However, only one family of animal, other than humans, walks on two legs: the marsupials.

  1. The Kangaroo

    • All marsupials give birth to almost-embryonic offspring that develop in the mother's pouch. Not all marsupials use their hind legs exclusively, although many from the antipodes do so. The familiar kangaroo, which actually hops more than it walks, falls in this category.

      The kangaroo, native to Australia, is the largest of the marsupials, weighing up to 187 pounds and capable of reaching speeds of 45 miles per hour, according to "The Encyclopedia of Animals." In addition, the kangaroo has a weapon; it can prop itself on its muscular tail and punch rivals or enemies with its powerful hind legs.

    The Wallaby

    • The wallaby looks like a miniature kangaroo and also is native to Australia. The parma wallaby, once thought to be extinct, was rediscovered in 1965 in New Zealand, where it had been introduced, and it since has been found in parts of Australia.

      The northern nail-tailed wallaby has a horny spur on its tail and is nocturnal and makes it home in the grassland of Northern Australia, where it feeds on roots.

    The Bettong

    • The brush-tailed bettong, found throughout Australia, looks like a cross between a rat and a kangaroo. This bread-loaf-sized marsupial is adapted to a variety of habitats, including grasslands and forests. Its diet consists only of fungi and it does not consume water.

      The rufus bettong recently made a comeback from the edge of extinction, where it had been forced by predation and competition from introduced species, "The Encyclopedia of Animals" explains. This bettong resembles the opossum, an American marsupial.

    The Potoroo

    • The potoroo, also known as the rat-kangaroo, is a small marsupial that indeed does look like a rat. It consumes fungi almost exclusively and lives on forest floors. The potoroo is nocturnal and is endangered.