Koala is a marsupial bear. Koalas are the original representatives of the living world of Australia Australia Kuala

Origin of the species and description

The official history of the koala begins in 1802, when naval officer Barralier discovered the remains of this animal and sent them in alcohol to the governor of New South Wales. A year later, a live koala was caught near Sydney. A few months later, an article was published in a Sydney newspaper giving a detailed description of this unusual animal.

For approximately 50 years, koalas were only seen in the New South Wales area. In 1855, the animal was discovered by naturalist William Blandowski in the state of Victoria, where he lived, and much later in 1923, the koala was found in south-east Queensland.

Video: Koala

Europeans who arrived in Australia called the koala a bear. According to some sources, the very meaning of the name “koala” is interpreted as “does not drink,” although many consider this assumption to be erroneous. In general, the koala drinks very little and extremely rarely; people have noticed that he does not drink right away. This rarity of drinking is due to the fact that the animal gets enough moisture from eucalyptus leaves and dew on them.

Indeed, the koala is very similar to, only it is larger in size and its fur is much thicker. The animal’s very pretty, slightly funny face makes you smile when you look at it. I want to pet and hug this big-eared, clumsy, good-natured fellow who resembles a teddy bear.

Appearance and features

Koalas look quite unusual and a little comical. Maybe this is because of their flattened nose, which has no fur. The animal's head is large, round with small, widely spaced eyes and impressive, splayed, fluffy ears. The body of koalas is quite powerful and stocky.

It is interesting that the specimens living in the north of the country are much smaller than those in the south. Their weight reaches 5 kg; in the south, koalas weigh three times as much - 14 - 15 kg. Males are larger in size than females, their heads are larger, but the size of their ears is smaller. Male representatives have a special gland on their chest with which they place marks. The female, like any representative of the fair sex, has a pouch in which two nipples are hidden.

Special attention should be paid to the koala's teeth; they are designed to deftly cope with eucalyptus leaves, which are very dense and fibrous. Using sharp incisors, the koala cuts off foliage like a knife, and its grinding teeth grind it into mush. The total number of teeth in a koala is 30.

The koala's limbs are quite long and strong. The front feet have long, hook-shaped claws for secure grip on trees, with two toes on one side opposed to three on the other. This feature allows animals to tightly grasp trees. On the hind legs, one big toe, which is devoid of claws, opposes the other four, equipped with prehensile claws. Thanks to this structure of the limbs, the animal easily grasps branches and trunks, hangs on them and easily moves in the crown. An original feature is the finger pads of koalas, which have a unique pattern (print), like those of humans or primates.

The koala's fur coat is pleasant to the touch, the fur is quite thick, its length is about 3 cm. The color scheme of the fur is gray (it can be lighter or darker). On the inside, the front legs are painted white, there is a white bib in front, and the chin is also white. The ears have a fringe of white, fluffy, rather long fur. There are also white spots on the sacrum. The koala's tail is similar to a bear's, it is very small and practically does not stand out, it is difficult to see.

Scientists have found that the size of the brain of koalas is very small compared to the body. They believe that animals have this feature due to the fact that their menu is very low in calories.

Where does the koala live?

The koala is endemic to Australia and has its permanent residence exclusively on this continent; this animal is not found anywhere else. The animal has settled in the coastal zones of the south and east of Australia. In the last century, koalas were brought to the western part of the Australian continent and to the islands of Kunguru and Magnitny, located near Queensland. Magnetic Island is now considered the northernmost limit of koala habitat. A huge number of these marsupials were destroyed in southern Australia all in the same last century. People began to restore the number of koalas by bringing them from Victoria.

Currently, the koala habitat area is about a million square kilometers. Koalas live where dense eucalyptus forests grow. They prefer both mountain forests with a humid climate and semi-desert areas with small copses. The population density of animals depends on the availability of food resources on its territory. If in the southern part, where rainforests abound, it can reach eight individuals per hectare, then in the western semi-desert territory you can find one animal per hundred hectares.

What does a koala eat?

Many people probably know that koalas follow a eucalyptus mono-diet, consuming both young shoots and foliage of eucalyptus trees. This unusual food addiction also has its advantages - the lack of competition for food. It is known that only marsupial flying squirrels and ring-tailed cuscus like to eat eucalyptus. The koala has long gotten used to the fact that he always has the same dish for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Eucalyptus foliage and their shoots are very coarse and fibrous, not everyone will like their specific taste and smell, in addition, the plant contains a high concentration of phenolic substances, there is practically no protein, and a real poison - hydrocyanic acid - also accumulates in the autumn shoots. Koalas have also adapted to this danger; using their sense of smell, they choose for food those plants where there is not much poison. Such low-poisonous trees prefer to grow on fertile soils near rivers.

The reason for such a meager and low-calorie diet is low metabolism, slow reactions and the phlegmatic nature of the animal. Here the koala resembles a sloth or a wombat. Over the course of a day, the animal eats from half a kilogram to one kilogram of shoots and foliage, chewing everything slowly and thoroughly into a puree, and then hiding it in its cheek pouches. The koala's digestive system is perfectly adapted to fibrous plant foods. The cecum of animals is quite long, reaching up to 2.4 m. The koala's liver works intensively to reduce the toxicity of eucalyptus and prevent poisoning.

Sometimes you can see how koalas eat the ground, this does not happen at all because the animals are going crazy, in this way they restore the lack of minerals in the body.

Koalas actually drink very little. This usually occurs when the animal becomes ill or during a prolonged drought. In ordinary times, the animal only needs the dew that appears on the foliage and the richness of the leaves themselves. An interesting fact is that out of 600 varieties of eucalyptus trees, the koala prefers to choose only 30 of them for food. In addition, preferences also differ in different parts of the continent.

Features of character and lifestyle

The measured and monotonous lifestyle of koalas is directly related to the evergreen eucalyptus trees on which they spend most of their time. Rare dashes on the ground serve only to move from one tree to another. During the daytime, koalas are overcome by sound and restless sleep, which lasts from 18 to 20 hours.

Then (usually at night) dormice spend a couple of hours feeding. Koalas have an unusual and strange ability to freeze, like idols, and sit for many hours completely motionless. Apparently, at these moments they philosophize and reflect on their leisurely life, saturated with the eucalyptus smell.

The koala climbs trees quite deftly, clinging to trunks and branches with its clawed paws. Although the animals are slow and inhibited, when they sense a threat, they can quickly run away and then hide in the green crown. This animal can even cope with the water element if necessary. In addition, when frightened, the koala screams heart-rendingly in a low voice, although under normal conditions he is silent and modest.

Koalas live alone, each having their own territory. They do not favor randomly wandering competitors; males usually start a fight when they meet, especially during the mating season. Koalas have a sedentary lifestyle; they prefer not to leave their territories. In the wild, koalas live for about 12 years; in captivity they can live up to 20, although this is very rare.

Still, speaking about the character and disposition of these unusual creatures, it is worth noting that they are not as temperamental as many other animals, but very friendly, kind and trusting. It is easy to tame and become a true friend for a koala; the animal very quickly becomes attached to people and gives them its love and tenderness. Looking at the slowness and lethargy of koalas, you experience peace, and all worries and vanity fade into the background.

To summarize, here we can highlight the following features of the character and disposition of koalas:

• slowness;
• detachment;
• gullibility;
• good nature.

Social structure and reproduction

Both females and males become sexually mature by the age of two. Females begin to reproduce at the same age, and males only a couple of years later, when they become more mature and stronger for skirmishes with other males in a dispute for a female. There are many more females born in the population, so each male has not one, but several brides at once. Koalas are not particularly fertile, so they produce offspring once every two years.

During the mating season, cavaliers emit heart-rending screams that attract females. They also rub their chests against tree trunks, placing their marks. During this period, grooms can travel considerable distances in search of partners, who can number from two to five. Females love larger and louder gentlemen, and their choice is based on these qualities. Like other marsupials, the koala's genitals have interesting features: the male has a bifurcated reproductive organ, and the female has two vaginas. The mating season lasts from September or October to February.

Koala pregnancy lasts from 30 to 35 days. It very rarely happens that two babies are born at once; usually a single baby is born. It is completely naked, its skin is pinkish in color, the cub is very tiny - up to 1.8 cm long and weighs only 5 grams.

For the first six months of his life, the baby does not leave his mother’s bag, where he drinks milk with pleasure. For the next six months of its life, the slightly grown baby rides on its mother, holding onto her fur in the back or belly with his tenacious paws. By the age of thirty weeks, the baby switches from a milk diet to feeding on maternal excrement, consisting of half-digested eucalyptus leaves. He eats like this for a whole month.

Koalas become independent already at one year of age. Females usually leave their mother at this time, beginning their adult life. And males live with their mother until they are two or three years old, only then they decide to leave her, acquiring their own territories for life.

Natural enemies of koalas

In the wild, the koala has practically no enemies. Predators are not at all interested in these animals, because their meat is thoroughly saturated with eucalyptus, so it is impossible to eat it. A wild dingo or an ordinary stray dog ​​can attack a koala, but they only get into fights and get into fights; they do not need the koala as a source of food.

Unfortunately, koalas are susceptible to a number of diseases that pose a significant threat to them, these are:

• conjunctivitis;
• sinusitis;
• cystitis;
• periostitis of the skull.

Inflammation of the nasal sinuses in animals often develops into pneumonia, which can lead to death. There is evidence that outbreaks of these diseases in the 19th and 20th centuries significantly reduced the koala population on the Australian continent. The greatest threat to koalas is posed by humans by cutting down eucalyptus forests, destroying the animals because of their soft fur coat. Also, recently the number of highways has increased, on which slow-moving animals are increasingly dying under the wheels of cars.

Population and species status

Outbreaks of the previously mentioned diseases were one of the main reasons for the decline in koala numbers, but this was until Europeans appeared on the continent. They liked the silky and pleasant fur of animals, because of which people began to mercilessly destroy them. It was not difficult to kill a trusting and harmless koala. There is information that in 1924 alone, about two million skins were harvested.

Realizing the scale of the disaster, the Australian government first introduced restrictions on shooting, and later in 1927 completely eliminated hunting for these cute animals. Only twenty years later, the koala population began to gradually increase. It’s great that now the number of koalas has returned to normal, but in some areas (Kangaroo Island) there are too many of them, they completely gnaw all the eucalyptus trees. There it was proposed to carry out a small shooting in order to slightly reduce the number, but the authorities did not dare to do this. In the state of Victoria, on the contrary, in 2015, about 700 individuals were destroyed so that the rest would have enough food.

Currently, the status of the koala population is “low risk”, but the threat of deforestation and epidemics is still relevant. There is an international organization, the Australian Koala Foundation, which cares about the preservation of the koala population and the places where they live. In cities such as Brisbane and Perth there are entire protected parks where marsupials live safely and happily.

Koala- not only a universal favorite of Australians, but also a symbol of the entire continent. He can be called the personification of calm, composure and serenity. The koala lives in its leisurely eucalyptus world far from the bustle and confusion. The main thing is that a person can understand his modest nature and not treacherously invade the life of this harmless and kindest creature. We should learn from him good nature and abstraction from worries and problems.

Koala - “does not drink,” this is roughly how the name of this animal is translated from one of the local Australian dialects. Many years passed before biologists established that this plush lump occasionally, but still drinks water.

Description of the koala

The discoverer of the species was the naval officer Barralier, who in 1802 discovered and sent the remains of a koala preserved in alcohol to the governor of New South Wales. A live koala was caught near Sydney the following year, and a couple of months later Sydney Gazette readers saw its detailed description. Since 1808, the koala has been considered a close relative of the wombat, being part of the same order of two-incisor marsupials, but being the only representative of the koala family.

Appearance

The charm of the appearance is given by the comical combination of a flattened leathery nose, small, blind eyes and expressive, widely spaced ears with fur sticking out at the edges.

Outwardly, the koala slightly resembles, but, unlike the latter, it is endowed with more pleasant, thick and soft fur up to 3 cm high and elongated limbs. Northern animals are smaller in size (females sometimes do not even reach 5 kg), southern animals are almost three times larger (males weigh almost 14 kg).

This is interesting! Few people know that koalas are rare mammals (along with primates), whose fingertips are drawn with unique papillary patterns, exactly like those of humans.

Koala teeth are adapted for eating plants and are similar in structure to the teeth of other two-incisor marsupials (including kangaroos and wombats). The sharp incisors, with which the animal cuts leaves, and the grinding teeth are separated from each other by a diastema.

Since the koala feeds in trees, nature has given it long, prehensile claws on its front paws. Each hand is equipped with two (set apart) double-phalanx thumbs, opposed to three standard fingers (with three phalanges).

The hind legs are arranged differently: on the foot there is a single big toe (devoid of a claw) and four others armed with claws. Thanks to its grasping paws, the animal clings tightly to the branches, locking its hands into a lock: in this position, the koala clings to its mother (until it becomes independent), and when it grows up, it dines, hangs on one paw and sleeps.

The thick coat is colored in smoky gray shades, but the belly always looks lighter. The tail resembles a bear's: it is so short that it is almost invisible to outsiders.

Character and lifestyle

The koala's entire life passes in the thick of the eucalyptus forest: during the day he sleeps, perched on a branch/fork of branches, and at night he climbs the crown in search of food.

Females live alone, rarely leaving the boundaries of their personal territories, which occasionally (usually in food-rich regions) coincide. Males do not set boundaries, but they are not known for their friendliness either: when they meet (especially during the rut), they fight until they are noticeably wounded.

The koala is capable of freezing in one position for 16–18 hours a day, not counting sleep. Numb, he sits motionless, grasping a trunk or branch with his forelimbs. When the foliage ends, the koala easily and deftly jumps to the next tree, descending to the ground only if the target is too far away.

In case of danger, the inhibited koala demonstrates an energetic gallop, thanks to which it quickly reaches the nearest tree and climbs up. If necessary, will swim across a water obstacle.

This is interesting! The koala is silent, but when frightened or injured it makes a loud and low sound, surprising for its small build. This cry, as zoologists have found, is responsible for a pair of vocal cords (additional), which are located behind the larynx.

In recent years, many highways have been built on the Australian continent crossing eucalyptus forests, and slow-moving koalas often die under the wheels while crossing the road. The low intelligence of koalas is complemented by their incredible friendliness and good tameability: in captivity, they become touchingly attached to the people caring for them.

Lifespan

In the wild, a koala lives to about 12–13 years of age, but in zoos, with good care, some specimens have lived up to 18–20 years of age.

Range, habitats

As an endemic to the Australian continent, the koala is found only here and nowhere else. The marsupial's natural range includes coastal regions in eastern and southern Australia. At the beginning of the last century, koalas were brought to Western Australia (Yanchep Park), as well as to several islands (including Magnitny Island and Kangaroo Island) near Queensland. Magnitny Island is now recognized as the northernmost point of its modern range.

In the first half of the last century, marsupials living in the state of South Australia were exterminated in large numbers. The livestock had to be restored with animals brought from Victoria.

Important! Today, the total area of ​​the habitat, which includes about 30 biogeographic regions, is almost 1 million km². The typical habitats of koalas are dense eucalyptus forests, which are in close food association with these marsupials.

Koala diet

The animal has practically no food competitors - only the marsupial flying squirrel and the ring-tailed cuscus display similar gastronomic preferences. Fibrous shoots and leaves of eucalyptus (with a high concentration of phenolic/terpene substances) are what koalas eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner. This vegetation contains little protein, and in young shoots (as autumn approaches) hydrocyanic acid is also formed.

But the animals, thanks to their keen sense of smell, have learned to select the least poisonous species of eucalyptus, which usually grow on fertile soil along river banks. Their foliage was found to be less toxic than that of trees growing in infertile areas. Biologists have calculated that the food supply of marsupials includes only 120 species of eucalyptus out of eight hundred.

Important! The low calorie content of the food is quite consistent with the energy consumption of the phlegmatic animal, since its metabolism is two times lower than that of most mammals. In terms of metabolic rate, the koala is comparable only to the sloth and wombat.

During the day, the animal picks and thoroughly chews from 0.5 to 1.1 kg of leaves, depositing the ground mixture in its cheek pouches. The digestive tract is well adapted to digesting plant fibers: their absorption is helped by a unique microflora with bacteria that easily decompose coarse cellulose.

The process of processing food continues in the extended cecum (up to 2.4 m long), and then the liver gets to work, neutralizing all toxins that penetrate the blood.

From time to time, koalas begin to eat soil - this is how they make up for the lack of valuable minerals. These marsupials drink very little: water appears in their diet only when they are sick and during periods of prolonged drought. In normal times, the koala gets enough of the dew that settles on the leaves and the moisture contained in eucalyptus leaves.

Reproduction and offspring

Koalas are not particularly fertile and begin breeding once every 2 years. During this period, lasting from October to February, males rub their chests against the trunks (to leave their marks) and shout loudly, calling for a mate.

Females select a candidate based on the heart-rending scream (heard a kilometer away) and size (the larger, the better). Male koalas are always in short supply (fewer of them are born), so one chosen one impregnates from 2 to 5 brides per season.

This is interesting! The male has a forked penis, the female has 2 vaginas and 2 autonomous uteruses: this is how the reproductive organs of all marsupials are arranged. Sexual intercourse occurs on the tree; gestation lasts about 30–35 days. Koalas rarely give birth to twins; much more often, a single naked and pink child is born (up to 1.8 cm in length and weighing 5.5 g).

The cub drinks milk for six months and sits in the pouch, and for the next six months rides on the mother (back or belly), grasping the wool. At 30 weeks of age, he begins to eat his mother's excrement - a porridge made from semi-digested leaves. He eats this food for a month.

Young animals gain independence by about a year, but males often remain with their mother up to 2–3 years, while one-year-old and one-and-a-half-year-old females leave home in search of their own areas. Fertility in females occurs at 2–3 years, in males at 3–4 years.

34-24 million years ago, when, judging by fossil remains, there were at least 18 species of marsupial bears. Among them there was such a giant as the Queensland koala Koalemus, which weighed half a ton. Modern koala Phascolarctos cinereus, presumably appeared 15 million years ago.

The koala went unnoticed by James Cook's expedition, which discovered the east coast of Australia in 1770. The first mention of it is found in the report of John Price, a servant of the Governor of New South Wales, John Hunter, on a trip to the Blue Mountains in 1798. Price writes that in the Blue Mountains there is an animal called kullavain, similar in appearance to a sloth. The koala was discovered for science in 1802 by naval officer Barralier, who discovered the remains of a koala among the aborigines and sent the animal’s limbs preserved in alcohol to the Governor of New South Wales, King. In June 1803, a live koala was captured south of Sydney, and the Sydney Gazette published a detailed description of it on 21 August. However, the koala did not receive a scientific name until 1816, when the French zoologist Blainville gave it a generic name Phascolarctos- from Greek. phaskolos"leather bag" and arktos"bear". Species name cinereus The animal received the (ash) color for its fur color.

For about half a century, the koala was only found within New South Wales. It was encountered in Victoria in 1855 by naturalist William Blandowski, and in south-eastern Queensland in 1923 by O. Thomas. Recently, the koala also inhabited South Australia, but was completely exterminated here at the beginning of the 20th century. The koala is not preserved in Western Australia, although Quaternary remains indicate that it was found here too.

Appearance

The koala is a medium-sized animal with a dense build: its body length is 60-82 cm; weight from 5 to 16 kg. The tail is very short and invisible from the outside. The head is large and wide, with a flattened “face”. The ears are large, rounded, covered with thick fur. The eyes are small. The bridge of the nose is hairless and black. There are cheek pouches.

The koala's hair is thick, soft, and durable; on the back the color varies from light gray to dark gray, sometimes reddish or reddish, the belly is lighter.

The koala's limbs are adapted for climbing - the thumb and forefinger of the forelimbs and limbs are opposed to the rest, which allows the animal to grasp tree branches. The claws are strong and sharp, capable of supporting the weight of the animal. There is no claw on the big toe of the hind limbs. Koalas are one of the few non-primate animals to have a papillary pattern on their toe pads. Koala fingerprints are indistinguishable from human fingerprints even under an electron microscope.

The brood pouch in females is well developed and opens at the back; There are two nipples inside.

Koalas are usually silent and only vocalize during the breeding season or when in danger. The calling cry of the male is described as “something between the snoring of a fat drunkard, the creaking of a door on rusty hinges and the grumbling of a dissatisfied pig.” A frightened or injured koala screams and “cries” like a child.

The size and color of this animal varies depending on where it lives. Thus, the koalas of Victoria are larger and heavier, they have thicker and denser fur of a dark gray color, often with a brownish tint on the back. In tropical and subtropical Queensland, koalas are much smaller and lighter in color, with less and shorter fur.

The appearance of the koala is a bit like a bear (hence its name - marsupial bear); and the vestigial tail, the location of the brood pouch and the dental formula bring it closer to wombats, with which it apparently had a common ancestor.

Spreading

Koalas are found in eastern Australia - from Adelaide in the south to Cape York Peninsula in the north. The koalas of South Australia were exterminated already in historical times - in the 20s of the 20th century, but this state was again populated by individuals from the state of Victoria.

Lifestyle and nutrition

Koala with baby

Koala eats eucalyptus leaves

The koala's metabolic rate is almost half that of most mammals (with the exception of wombats and sloths), which helps it compensate for the low nutritional value of its diet. A koala requires from 0.5 to 1.1 kg of leaves per day, which it carefully crushes and chews, accumulating the resulting mass in its cheek pouches. Like all mammals that feed on fibrous plant foods, koalas have a rich microflora in their digestive tract, including bacteria that convert indigestible cellulose into digestible compounds. The cecum, where the digestion process takes place, is extremely developed, reaching a length of 2.4 m. Toxic substances, entering the blood, are neutralized in the liver.

Social structure and reproduction

Baby Koala

Female koalas lead a solitary lifestyle and stick to their own areas, which they rarely leave. In fertile areas, the sites of individual individuals often overlap each other. Males are not territorial, but even less sociable - when they meet, especially during the breeding season, they often attack each other, causing injury.

Only during the breeding season, which lasts from October to February, koalas gather in groups consisting of an adult male and several females. At this time, males often rub their chests against trees, leaving odorous marks, and emit loud calling calls, sometimes heard a kilometer away. Since fewer males are born than females, harems of 2-5 females gather around male koalas during the mating season. Mating takes place on a tree (not necessarily eucalyptus).

Pregnancy lasts 30-35 days. There is only one cub in the litter, which at birth are only 15-18 mm long and weigh about 5.5 g; occasionally twins. The cub remains in the pouch for 6 months, feeding on milk, and then “travels” for another six months on the mother’s back or stomach, clinging to her fur. At 30 weeks of age, he begins to eat his mother’s semi-liquid excrement, consisting of a kind of gruel from semi-digested eucalyptus leaves - in this way microorganisms necessary for the digestive process enter the digestive tract of young koalas. The mother excretes this pulp for about a month. At the age of one year, the cubs become independent - young females at the age of 12-18 months go in search of sites, but males often remain with their mothers until they are 2-3 years old.

Koalas breed once every 1-2 years. Sexual maturity in females occurs at 2-3 years, in males at 3-4 years. On average, a koala lives 12-13 years, although there are cases where they live up to 20 years of age.

Population status and conservation

Before the arrival of Europeans, the main causes of mortality for koalas were epizootics, droughts and fires. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the koala became an object of hunting because of its thick fur. In 1924 alone, 2 million pelts were exported from the eastern states. The sharp decline in the number of this animal forced the Australian government to first limit and in 1927 ban koala hunting, but only by -1954 did their population begin to gradually recover. Although the koala has been given the status lower risk(low risk), they remain threatened by fires, eucalyptus deforestation, and ticks introduced to Australia from Japan and Indonesia. In Australia, koala parks have been created: Lone Pine Koala near Sydney and Kounu Koala Park near Perth.

Notes

Media

Koala jumping from tree to tree

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

See what “Marsupial bears” are in other dictionaries:

marsupial bears- koalos statusas T sritis zoologija | vardynas taksono rangas gentis apibrėžtis Gentyje 1 rūšis. Paplitimo arealas – R. Australija. atitikmenys: lot. Phascolarctos engl. koala bears; koalas; native bears vok. Beutelbären; Koalas rus. koala;... ... Žinduolių pavadinimų žodynas

The koala is a herbivorous marsupial that moves along tree branches. Their habitat is the Australian continent. Sometimes the koala is called a “marsupial bear,” although these animals have nothing in common with bears. The koala is the only species of animal in the Koala family.

Currently, there are about 100,000 individuals left. But this number is constantly decreasing for a variety of reasons. Therefore, they try to treat these animals as carefully as possible.

Scientific classification of koala

1. Kingdom: Animals.
2. Type: Chordata.
3. Subphylum: Vertebrates.
4. Class: Mammals.
5. Subclass: Marsupials.
6. Order: Two-incisor marsupials.
7. Family: Koalas.
8. Genus: Koalas.
9. Species: Koala.

Characteristics of the koala family.

All koalas, without exception, are quite small in size. Their average length is 70-73 cm. The weight of an adult koala is approximately 6-15 kg (depending on the amount of food consumed).

As already mentioned: the koala is the only species of this family. But previously the koala family included several more species. Unfortunately, all representatives except the koala have become extinct.

Koalas, which are now extinct, could weigh more than half a ton. This is 50 times more than the weight of modern koalas!
The koala was first discovered in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.

Typically, koalas have a lifespan of approximately 14 years. But there are also long-livers who die at the age of 20.

The koala's muzzle has a slightly flattened shape, with small eyes and a rather large black nose. The body of these animals is covered almost everywhere with fur. It can have a variety of shades: gray, ashen, grayish, etc.

Koala nutrition and lifestyle

Eucalyptus forests are the main habitat of the koala. Literally all their lives they are in the thickets of these trees.

In the first half of the day, koalas sleep (comfortably sitting in the trees), and at night they move through the trees in search of food. When a koala is awake, he can just sit for hours on end and not even move. This activity takes him more than half of his life. These “bears” are motionless for more than 15 hours a day!

Koalas practically do not move on the ground. The only exception can be the transition from one tree to another, when it is impossible to jump over.

Despite some clumsiness of these animals, they jump surprisingly deftly and successfully. In case of danger, they can even go into a gallop. Plus, koalas can swim quite well.

The koala's feeding habits are directly related to its slow lifestyle. Since they feed exclusively on eucalyptus leaves and shoots, which contain very little protein, they cannot lead a more active lifestyle.

For most animals, eucalyptus leaves are real poison. But for “marsupial bears” it is an integral part of the diet.

The koala has very few competitors for such food. The exceptions are: the marsupial flying squirrel and the ring-tailed possum.

The koala also has a very highly developed sense of smell. It is because of this that they choose the least poisonous leaves for their food. This is noticeable by what types of eucalyptus they feed on.

Koalas almost never drink water. They get all the moisture they need from eucalyptus leaves. But sometimes: when koalas are sick or when there is a time of prolonged drought, they still drink water.

Sometimes these animals can even eat soil. This is due to the fact that animals lack minerals in their bodies.