Apparently before making his way to the James Corden Show Eric Bana was almost in a fight with a kangaroo. As he describes it he was camping out in the bush, a term used when camping in an wild area in many regions, when a grey kangaroo approached his campsite. It would seem that the grey had an issue with where Eric was setting up camp, and began to nudge his tent as though indicating that he needed to move. When Eric went to fire up his motorbike the grey simply looked at him as if to say ‘seriously?’. This is usually the moment when you need to decide if you’re going to stand your ground or move along. With some animals standing your ground is a no-brainer. It can be done in a few different ways and shouldn’t be too difficult to make it known that you won’t be moving. With other animals however it might be best to move on and find a place where they won’t bother you.
Many of us that live in the US would never know what it’s like to have to live with kangaroo’s, as they’re not indigenous to this continent. A kangaroo might not seem dangerous to those of us in this part of the world but it should considering that those hind legs have wickedly sharp claws on them and can generate a great deal of force. Kangaroo’s apparently don’t hit as a first resort but won’t shy away from it either. The feet are what can really do the damage since as they kick their claws can rip as well, and there’s also the possibility of them biting too. In short it might not be the same as tackling a grizzly, meaning you could very possibly walk away, but a fight with a ‘roo is still a risky proposition that isn’t bound to end well since the buggers can hit pretty hard when they want to.
Bana, being a native of Australia, knew this too well it seems since he was in no hurry to really get into a scrap with this particular kangaroo. You don’t get to hear what happened at the end of the encounter but you have to assume that the ‘roo either moved on, or Bana did. But he was adamant when Corbin asked if he would ever fight a ‘roo, and he said no with only a short time to think. That’s probably the wisest answer he could have given since even trained kangaroo’s don’t exactly know when to hold back their full power. Comparing the kangaroo to other animals you might think of a horse kicking a person standing behind them. The horse would normally be doing this out of fright or self-defense if they don’t know who or what is behind them. If they sense a threat their kick is going to come out hard and fast but not terribly accurate. So a person getting kicked by a horse would have to suffer a blow to the head or chest to not get up again.
On the other hand, a horse will be kicking behind themselves, while a ‘roo will be facing whoever they’re kicking. They might not be kicking in self-defense either but out of aggression, and unlike a horse’s hooves their feet have claws on them. So the force of their kick might be comparable, but it’s the claws that will do the real damage.
