More than 80% of our plants, mammals, reptiles and frogs are unique to Australia and are found nowhere else in the world. Some of our Australian animals are very well known like kangaroos, dingos, wallabies and wombats and of course the koala, platypus and echidna.
Australia probably has between 200,000 and 300,000 species, about 100,000 of which have been described. There are some 250 species of native mammals, 550 species of land and aquatic birds, 680 species of reptiles, 190 species of frogs, and more than 2,000 species of marine and freshwater fish.
The Tasmanian Devil is a marsupial that only lives - the name says it all - on the island of Tasmania. It is one of Australia's most unique and endangered species.
You'll have a good chance of spotting kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, wombats, echidnas and even platypuses. Our coral reefs: The Great Barrier Reef is home to 1,625 known fish species and six of the world's seven types of sea turtle.
KOALAS ARE A TOTEM FOR MANY FIRST NATIONS PEOPLE
The koala is a totem for many Aboriginal people, and totems are a very significant part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and identity.
The rarest animal in the world is the vaquita (Phocoena sinus). It is a kind of critically endangered porpoise that only lives in the furthest north-western corner of the Gulf of California in Mexico.
Woylie. The endangered Woylie or Brush-tailed Bettong is an extremely rare, rabbit-sized marsupial, only found in Australia.
Australia is known for many things, including swathes of tropical beaches, marine reserves, Aboriginal culture, cute koalas, rolling wine country, and lush rainforests.
The Dingo is Australia's largest terrestrial carnivore, though it occasionally eats plants and fruits. They're opportunistic hunters, but will also scavenge food.
Australia is one of the most important nations on Earth for biodiversity. In fact, it is one of only 17 'megadiverse' nations and is home to more species than any other developed country.
Act now, before it's all gone. We don't have a moment to lose. Australia has the worst mammal extinction rate of any country in the world, and the catastrophic bushfires of 2019-20 impacted nearly 3 billion animals and have pushed many more of our precious wildlife on the fast-track towards extinction.
The red kangaroo hops over the Australian continent at speeds of up to 54.6 mph (88 km/h).
Megafauna are large animals that roamed the Earth during the Pleistocene, 2.5 million to 11,700 years ago. In Australia, Megafauna included the huge wombat-shaped Diprotodon and giant goanna Megalania. European Megafauna included Woolly Rhinoceroses, Mammoths, Cave Lions and Cave Bears.
Description: Quokkas are one of the smallest wallaby species in Australia. They have thick, coarse, grey-brown fur; short, rounded fluffy ears, a tail 24–31 cm long and shorter hindlegs than other macropod species.
Northern hairy-nosed wombats are excellent diggers because they have powerful stubby legs and sharp claws. Fact: Northern hairy-nosed wombat is the rarest land mammal in the world. In the past 100 years, it occurred in Queensland, Victoria, and New South Wales.
Animal Medicines Australia
Dogs continue to be Australia's most popular pets, with just over 5 million dogs across the nation.
The passenger pigeon (Ectopistes migratorius) became extinct at 1 p.m. on 1 September 1914 with the death of Martha, the last surviving member of the species, at the Cincinnati Zoo.
Large mammals, such as primates, cattle, horses, some antelopes, giraffes, hippopotamuses, rhinoceroses, elephants, seals, whales, dolphins, and porpoises, generally are pregnant with one offspring at a time, although they may have twin or multiple births on occasion.
Adnoartina is known as a religious deity in the Australian Aboriginal culture. This deity is described as taking the form of a gecko lizard and is considered to be a sacred ancestral being. Adnoartina offers an Indigenous understanding to the creation of Uluru, an Australian historical landmark.
Echidnas are not only one of the strangest animals in Australia, but possibly the entire world.
The laughing kookaburra is Australia's national symbol. The kookaburra is a brown-colored bird, about the size of a crow.