Late last week, the NSW Department of Primary Industries announced that the entire state was now in the grips of a drought.

Large areas of the region now have little or no grass for stock or wild animals.

Chalres Sturt University’s (CSU) lush lawns in Bathurst, Orange and Dubbo have become a favourite grazing place for kangaroos as the widespread drought has strengthened.

“This year, while there have been increased numbers of kangaroos on campus due to drought conditions, there have been no safety incidents with kangaroos on campus reported,” a university spokeswoman said.

The CSU spokeswoman said there had been no on-campus vehicle collisions with kangaroos despite the number of marsupials increasing in recent times.

“The university advises students and staff regularly on the presence of fauna through our communication channels, including our SMS system, CSU Safe,” she said.

“CSU also provides 24 hour security to ensure the safety of our students, staff and visitors.”

A recent post by the Dubbo Golf Club to Facebook said “the locals are out in force across the course tonight” and shared a photo of dozens of kangaroos on the greens.

In Bathurst a large dead kangaroo was spotted along the Sydney Road at Kelso, near Clancy Ford, on Sunday afternoon.

While in Orange, scores of kangaroos have been spotted at the Orange Ex-Services Country Club, the TAFE campus, the hospital and areas south of the city.

Mid last month, a large male kangaroo was also spotted near the grounds of James Sheahan Catholic High School.

WIRES Central West vice chair Christie Jarrett said volunteers across the region have received many recent call outs to kangaroos hit by vehicles and others in malnourished condition due to the lack of feed.

She said Bathurst, Lithgow, Orange and Mudgee are areas of particular concern with many calls to these areas.

“Don’t swerve, but slow down when you’re driving at dusk and around dawn. Take 20km/h off your speed limit,” she said.

Ms Jarrett said for motorists who do collide with a kangaroo, she encouraged people to stop if safe to do so and check if the animal is still alive.

If so, do not go near the kangaroo as it as “they can still hop with a broken leg” and contact WIRES to report the injured animal.

Ms Jarrett said joeys often survive a collision but can soon die in the cold conditions so she encouraged people to check the pouch and report any young to WIRES.

“You can feel it from the outside [of the pouch] and we can come and rescue it,” she said.

Call WIRES on 1300 094 737.

An Office of Environment and Heritage spokeswoman said landholders experiencing economic impacts form kangaroos can be issued with permits to cull them.