Koala Bear
Every child's dream teddy bear
 |
| Some animals are just more popular than others and the koala is one of them. Though most people could tell you that this half-pint-size bear has cuddly, ashy grey fur, few people have been lucky enough to see it in the flesh. In fact koalas only live in a few of the smaller eucalyptus forests of Eastern Australia and there was only one zoo in the world,at one time, that possessed them, the San Diego Zoo in California; a succesful colony was established there a great number of years ago. Now there are several zoos that possess these adorable bears. The koala is an arboreal marsupial and seldom descends to the ground except in search of licks of certain nutrient mineral deposits or in order to cross from one tree to another. It is a skillful climber, and manages to clamber up the smoothest tree trunks with the aid of the very sharp claws on its feet. It is a nocturnal creature and spends the day comfortably curled up in a forked branch. | Koalas live in groups of up to twenty individuals, and communicate with each other in shrill wails which carry a long distance. The leaves of certain species of gum tree or eucalyptus are the koalas's sole sustenance, and even then it does not eat just any of the dozen acceptable species; it selects only old leaves, leaves that are rough and leathery, and avoids the young tender ones which in fact contain a lethal amount of prussic acid. This extraordinary diet impregnates them with an overpowering odor of eucalyptus-in fact a koala smells like a giant cough drop! Koalas breed slowly. Young koalasfeed on the mothers excrement when she ceases to suckle them and before they begin to feed on leaves of the eucalyptus trees. |
| Gestation: 25 to 30 days Number of young: 1 Weight at birth: about 275 g (9 oz) | Weight at birth: 5 to 6 g (1/6 to 1/5 oz) | Cub remains in mother's pouch for the first 6 months and can fend for itself at 1 year old Sexual maturity: from 3 to 4 years | Life-span: 20 years Adult weight: 4 to 15 kg (9 to 33 lbs) Total length: 60 to 85 cm (24 to 34 in) |  |
| Phylum: Vertebrata | Class: Mammalia | Order: Marsupialia | Family: Phalangeridae | Genus and species: Phascolarctos cinereus |
Some wildlife links for you to follow
| DISCOVERY DISCOVERY SCHOOL THE NATURE COMPANY ADVENTURE TRAVEL THE FLAGSHIP STORE AFRICA'S ELEPHANT KINGDOM |
Juke Joint | Sports Lounge | Make It Count | Chat Backdoor
Credits | Diva's Dedication | Broken Ankles | Site Map
Sign Guestbook | View Guestbook | Webmaster
Wildlife Archive
