Many people associate kangaroos with Australia, although they are found not only there. You can see these animals in other countries, such as Indonesia or New Zealand. But it is in Australia that they are considered the main national symbol. Kangaroos do not know how to back away and always move only forward; therefore, they personify purposefulness, perseverance, confidence in their abilities, and the will to win.
And these marsupials are very strong. They have powerful legs and a tail on which they lean when at rest. Their main diet is plant foods, which is why animals are considered agricultural pests. Seeing kangaroo logos is not as common as with some popular predators. And then almost all of them belong to Australian organizations. In this collection, we will look at several emblems with animalistic motifs. They are united by one common image, but the styles are different everywhere – from cartoonish to futuristic. First on the list are brands that have nothing to do with Australia. There are few of them, but each of them is well known in their region.
UMKC Kangaroos
Walt Disney once personally drew the logo for UMKC Kangaroos, but that original version has not been used for a long time. The modern symbol looks completely different: the designers decided to show not the great speed of the animal but its physical strength, so they depicted it as powerful and muscular. And the University of Missouri-Kansas City intercollegiate teams are now called differently: Kansas City Roos. They were renamed in 2019 when it became clear that the shortened version of “Roos” had taken root both inside and outside the sports program.
The current emblem appeared in the same year after a rebranding. It contains a very serious and formidable kangaroo, which put out a hand in front of him with a clenched fist, and pulled the other back as if preparing for a blow. Yes, it was the hand because the artists made the animal anthropomorphic and even dressed it in a sweater with a monogram of the letters “KC.” Below, the phrase “UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI” is written in small sans-serif type. Below it is the name of the city, divided into two lines and consisting of large bold letters with individual designs. The logo is made in a blue and gold palette because these are the official colors of the educational institution.
Akron Zips
There is another university in the US with a sports program whose mascot is a kangaroo. This is the University of Akron in Ohio. His Akron Zips teams used to have a logo of a marsupial. The drawing was very sketchy because the artists did not go into detail and used a combination of blue, dark gold, and white spots. The emblem featured only a kangaroo head with an upper back. The protruding line replaced the horizontal stroke in the letter “A,” which was in the background. The designers made the side “A” strokes very wide and decorated them with miniature triangular serifs. For greater contrast, the letter was white, and the base of the kangaroo was dark blue. A common golden outline united them. Blue and gold are the official colors of the University of Akron.
Deliveroo
For the British company Deliveroo, the logo is a way to show the concept of high-speed food delivery visually. After all, the kangaroo depicted there fits perfectly into the idea of the brand. As far as we know, these animals are very agile: they move quickly and can cover long distances in a short period of time. So the designers presented one cartoon kangaroo as a courier with a bag in his front paws. It is located against the background of a light turquoise circle, and the name of the online service is written in capital letters at the bottom, for which the developers used a black grotesque with rounded corners.
Qantas
Qantas is the first brand in the review that is directly related to Australia. It is the largest air carrier on the continent, taking its name from the phrase “Queensland And Northern Territory Aerial Services.” He also has the nickname The Flying Kangaroo, which arose because of the emblem with the Australian national animal. Previously, the kangaroo in the picture really was flying because the artists added wings to it. But even after the disappearance of the wings, the silhouette continues to look light and airy, which was achieved thanks to the raised lines. So the Qantas logo is still associated with flight.
It is obvious that the red triangle in shape imitates the aircraft’s tail. But it’s quite difficult to recognize a kangaroo in a white figure with two long processes, especially after the 2016 redesign. In the previous emblem, at least the front legs and neck were visible. By the way, here is this more understandable version, which was used until 2016. It was supplemented with a gray inscription “QANTAS,” consisting of bold cursive letters with rounded ends.
Australian Government
The Australian Government logo contains the official symbol of the state – the Commonwealth Coat of Arms. It includes many small elements, including the two main inhabitants of the continent: the kangaroo and the emu. These are endemics of the local fauna; that is, it is almost impossible to see them anywhere else. In addition, both animals are known for their inability to walk backward. So the designers wanted to show that the country is only moving forward toward a better future. A kangaroo and an emu are supported from different sides by a coat of arms, inside of which the signs of each of the six states of Australia are depicted. The same states are represented by the six-pointed gold Star of Federation above the yellow and blue stripe. The emblem is decorated with intertwined golden acacia branches and complemented by a ribbon with the country’s name.
Australian Air Lines
Australia’s national treasure once symbolized another local company, Australian AirLines. It worked for five years (until 2006) and provided economy class passenger transportation services. The Australian AirLines logo also contained the image of a kangaroo, as the Qantas mentioned above, which is rather strange, given the lack of relationship between a land animal and flying in the air. But the designers felt that the kangaroo moves quickly, bouncing up, which is already enough to make it the “face” of the air carrier. The marsupial animal looks illegible: it looks like a black blob with lines stretched out in different directions, which indicate the head, paws, and a long tail bent up. The silhouette is surrounded by a wide red outline and a train of small red circles trails behind it. Obviously, these points symbolize the rapid movement.
Australia National Brand
Australia Nation Brand is the youngest on this list. It was created in 2022 to represent the country at the international level, increase its competitiveness in the global market for goods and services, and popularize tourist sites. For Australia National Brand, the logo was chosen back in 2020 but had to be changed because it looked like the COVID-19 virus under a microscope. The authorities recognized that the emblem is very similar to the image of the coronavirus, so it was decided to change it without increasing the budget allocated for the project’s development.
The new symbol results from a fruitful collaboration between National Brand Advisory and Indigenous Balarinji. The logo now features a golden kangaroo made up of thin broken stripes and dots. And at the bottom, the dark green word “AUSTRALIA” is written. We can say that this is a modern reinterpretation of the iconic green and gold logo of Australia Made.
KangaROOS
At KangaROOS, the logo exactly reflects the name. First, there is a corresponding inscription. Secondly, the animal that inspired the brand developers is depicted in the upper right corner. It was logical for a manufacturer of sports shoes, apparel, and accessories to choose the kangaroo as a symbol. After all, this inhabitant of Australia has well-developed muscles, and he also knows how to fight and moves quickly. Although, in fact, the name KangaROOS appeared after the company’s founder created training shoes with pockets to keep the key to the locker and change money there. The marsupial animal on the emblem is easily guessed in the black silhouette because the designers tried to make it proportional. The inscription is made in the same black letters using a bold sans-serif font.
