About Koalas

Characteristics

  • are arboreal (live in trees), only coming to ground to change trees
  • are found from north Queensland to South Australia in eucalypt and woodland forests
  • are marsupials – they carry their young in a pouch
  • are the only other animal (besides primates) that have individual fingerprints like us
  • have five digits on each front paw, two of which are opposed to the others, this helps them to hold firmly onto the branches and to grip their food
  • the second and third digits on their hind paws are fused together to form a grooming claw
  • have thick, woolly fur which protects them from both high and low temperatures, it also acts like a ‘raincoat’ when it rains
  • northern koalas are typically smaller and lighter in colour than southern koalas
  • use a range of sounds to communicate with one another over large distances
  • also communicate by marking their trees with their scent
  • have large ears that provide a keen sense of hearing
  • rely on their highly developed sense of smell to differentiate levels of toxins, nutrients and moisture in eucalyptus leaves
  • don’t live in family groups – bonding exists only between mothers and dependent joeys -they live in relatively well-defined home ranges, which border or partially overlap adjacent home ranges of other individuals

Diet

  • feed on a variety of eucalypt leaves and a few other related tree species
  • they consume around 500 grams of leaves each day
  • eucalyptus leaves have low nutritional value and are high in indigestible or toxic materials
  • joeys are not born with the specialised bacteria needed to digest leaves – mothers pass on bacteria by excreting a soft faecal substance (pap) which the joey eats, providing it with the required bacteria

Threats

There are a range of threats to koala survival in South East Queensland:

  • habitat loss and fragmentation due to urbanisation;
  • disease;
  • vehicle strikes;
  • dog attacks; and
  • climate change

There is growing evidence that increased stress from these threats is impacting on their long-term health and wellbeing.

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