[5] The swamp wallaby is found from the northernmost areas of Cape York Peninsula in Queensland, down the entire east coast and around to western Victoria and south-eastern South Australia, where it has greatly expanded its distribution over the past four decades.

Advances in rabbit control appear to have resulted in extension of the swamp wallaby's distribution, which has expanded since the time of European settlement.

[4] The species name bicolor comes from the distinct colouring variation, with the typical grey coat of the macropods varied with a dark brown to black region on the back, and light yellow to rufous orange on the chest.

[3] The swamp wallaby also has a rare 'golden' morph, found on the North and South Stradbroke islands and adjacent mainland.

The swamp wallaby exhibits an unusual form of embryonic diapause, differing from other marsupials in having its gestation period longer than its oestrous cycle.

[10] The swamp wallaby is notable for having a distinct sex-chromosome system from most other Theria (the subclass that includes marsupials and placental mammals).

[3] It will eat a wide range of food plants, depending on availability, including shrubs, pasture, agricultural crops, and native and exotic vegetation.

[4] There is evidence that the swamp wallaby is an opportunist taking advantage of food sources when they become available, such as fungi, bark and algae.

[13][3] However, genetic evidence demonstrates that Wallabia is embedded within the large genus Macropus, necessitating reclassification of this species in the future.