The man was a 77-year-old alpaca farmer from Western Australia…

In what has to be one of the most Australian ways to shuffle off this mortal coil, a man has sadly passed away from a fatal kangaroo attack. The last known death from a kangaroo encounter occurred all the way back in 1936, making this the first fatal attack in 86 years.

The victim of the recent attack was a 77-year-old alpaca breeder from Western Australia, who kept the kangaroo as a pet on his farm in Redmond. According to reports, when paramedics arrived at the scene the kangaroo tried to block the path and prevent them from reaching the man.

Just a casual Kangaroo boxing his opponent through a fence video.🦘🥊 🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/Pno8tTvskZ

— Mayo (@amayohayes) September 5, 2022

As one of Australia’s most iconic animals, kangaroos are generally fondly looked upon, so it’s easy to forget that they can be aggressive towards people if provoked – although this is evidently a rare occurrence. If you do happen to get on the wrong side of a kangaroo, they are equipped with fairly sharp teeth and claws which can do some pretty serious damage.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRddLDynsCs

Most of the time they are gentle animals who are happy to graze and go about their business. Although they are not always so passive when it comes to others of their kind. In 2014, footage of two kangaroos went viral after they were filmed fighting on a quiet, suburban street in Dawesville, south of Perth.