About Koalas
Koalas have grey fur with a cream/colored chest, and strong, clawed feet. They measure between 60cm to 85cm and weigh about 14kg. Koalas have big ears and noses. Koalas usually live for about 20 years.
Koalas have grey fur with a cream/colored chest, and strong, clawed feet. They measure between 60cm to 85cm and weigh about 14kg. Koalas have big ears and noses. Koalas usually live for about 20 years.
Even though koalas are often called "koala bears", they are not bears at all. They are actually marsupials, pouched animals. After being born the newborn, sometimes called a cub, lives in the mother's pouch, which is located on her back, for about six months. When the infant comes out of the pouch after six months, it rides on the mother's back until it's about 1 year old.
Koalas live in eastern Australia on eucalyptus trees. They almost never leave those trees. They eat the tree's leaves and sleep on it as well. Koalas eat more than 1kg of eucalyptus leaves per day. They even store eucalyptus leaves in their cheeks, like hamsters do. Even though they eat a lot, they sleep through most of the day. Koalas sleep about 18 hours daily. Koalas need a lot of space, each koala "uses up" about 100 eucalyptus trees, which is a big problem with Australia's woodlands shrinking, and koalas' habitats being destroyed.
The name koala comes from an Aboriginal language and means "no drink". This is because koalas rarely drink water. They get all their moisture from the leaves they eat.
There are only between 40000 and 80000 koalas left in Australia. This is mostly due to them losing their habitat. You can read more about this here
Koalas have some natural predators, but they do not make a significant impact on the wild population. Some predators are dingoes, owls, eagles, pythons, foxes and big cats.
Another danger for koalas is the risk of bushfires. Koalas often live in areas of bushlands, which are easy to burn. A whole colony could be killed by a single fire. In Australia that is not uncommon, considering how hot it often is.
However the most dangerous threats for koalas are humans. Koalas experience a loss of habitat, because of human settlement. Eucalyptus forests get cleared to make place for agriculture, mining, forestry, factories and roads. This is a serious issue for a lot of wildlife, because they will suffer from that loss of habitat and increased disturbance by humans, which increases the stress on the animals. This can make them more susceptible to diseases.
With koalas living so close to humans, another danger is being hit by a car or attacked by dogs. Over 4000 koalas are killed each year by cars and dogs. That is a huge number, considering there are less than 80000 koalas remaining in Australia today.