Koala: the koala is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia. There are two subspecies of koalas: adustus, the northern or Queensland koala, and victor, the southern koala.
Three subspecies are recognised: the Queensland koala (Phascolarctos cinereus adustus, Thomas 1923), the New South Wales koala (Phascolarctos cinereus cinereus, Goldfuss 1817), and the Victorian koala (Phascolarctos cinereus victor, Troughton 1935).
The fur varies in colour from light grey to brown. Koalas in the south generally tend to have fur which is darker and thicker (and sometimes browner) than those in the north.
Their fur is usually grey-brown in colour with white fur on the chest, inner arms, ears and bottom. They have no fur on their nose or the palms of their paws.
However, some animals that eat leaves have only one stomach, and they use a really big caecum to do this (that's the appendix in us, which is tiny). They are called 'hindgut fermenters'. Horses, rabbits and koalas are common animals you know that are in this category.
One of the leading killers of Australia's endearing koalas is a debilitating bacterial infection: chlamydia.
Koalas survive on stringy eucalyptus leaves, which are filled with toxic molecules that render the plant inedible to basically every other living thing. Koalas, though, evolved the ability to flush the toxins out quickly, so they can eat their way through pounds of leaves each day without getting sick.
Not only did the researchers discover that koalas are cleverer than first thought, but that these experimental structures are working to keep them safe.
River Red Gum (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) along creeks and river banks. This is a magnificent tree that koalas adore. In our You Yangs research area it is their number 1 favourite tree.
When early European settlers first encountered koalas in Australia, they thought the tree-climbing animals were bears or monkeys. Even today people still incorrectly refer to koalas as “koala bears.” But koalas are actually marsupials, closer related to wombats and kangaroos.
4. Are koalas friendly? Despite their cute and cuddly-seeming exterior, koalas are wild animals that can become aggressive and injure you. Like all wild animals, they shouldn't be approached unless they're injured, sitting or lying on the ground for an extended period of time and in need of help.
No. Koalas eat only from a few kinds of eucalyptus trees. The stomach of a koala has a pouch connected to the junction of the small and large intestines called the caecum.
Koala fur differs in colour — from light grey to brown — depending on their environment. Animals in the south of Australia tend to have thicker and darker fur than those in the north. But a white koala is incredibly rare, Ms Booth said, and "quite unfortunate" if born in the wild, since it is more visible to predators.
Unfortunately for us, the science says no. Dr Kath Handasyde from the Department of Zoology has been researching the ecology, management and diseases of Australian native mammals for over 35 years, and says, fundamentally, the reason koalas aren't suitable as pets relates to issues of diet.
Bats, they sleep around 20 hours. The sloth sleeps around 20 as well. But the cute and cuddly, yet deadly koala, it can sleep up to a whopping 22 hours. That's around 91% of the day!
Koalas are such picky eaters that sometimes that won't even eat species of eucalypt that aren't their preferred choice. This preference stems from the fact that their stomachs simply can't handle it.
Unlike humans, koalas have two of them! Having two opposable thumbs makes it much easier for them to grip the trees and navigate from branch to branch.
Koalas are classed as marsupials, a different group of mammals, where females have a special pouch (front-facing or backwards facing) for rearing their young. A female koala gives birth to live, under-developed offspring—also called joey—who instinctively climb inside its mother's pouch to finish development.
1: Chimpanzee
Chimpanzees can learn sign language to communicate with humans. Topping our list of smartest animals is another great ape, the chimpanzee. The impressive intellectual abilities of this animal have long fascinated humans.
Experiencing emotions is unique to living creatures. From uplifting joy to something as complex as grief, it is something we all feel. And yes, animals too can feel these emotions. Koala mothers readily adopt orphaned joeys, and there's even documented stories of animals protecting humans.
CHIMPANZEES. RECKONED to be the most-intelligent animals on the planet, chimps can manipulate the environment and their surroundings to help themselves and their community. They can work out how to use things as tools to get things done faster, and they have outsmarted people many a time.
Many essential oils, such as eucalyptus oil, tea tree oil, cinnamon, citrus, peppermint, pine, wintergreen, and ylang ylang are straight up toxic to pets. These are toxic whether they are applied to the skin, used in diffusers or licked up in the case of a spill.
Yes, mostly Koalas do smell like cough drops or certainly a pleasant eucalyptus smell. Mature males tend to have a stronger odour because of their scent gland and it can be a strong musky odour than eucalyptus. Juvenile males are more likely to give off a very slight eucalyptus smell.
In fact, among all mammals, only the koala and three other marsupials (brushtail possum, common ringtail possum, and greater glider) are known to consume Eucalyptus foliage.