Koala



The koala is found in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. It lives in high tree tops in National Parks and forests. The koala likes to spend his day curled up in the fork of a eucalyptus tree. Their powerful legs help them to keep their balance in the trees.
 * Describe What Your Animal Looks Like (features, appearance)**

Koalas are usually ash grey with a white chest and the males are larger than females Thick fur, fluffy ears and a broad flat nose give them their "cuddly" appearance. The koala has a large black nose, short fat legs and is covered with thick, woolly, grey fur.They have strong limbs and large hands to help with climbing trees. The koala has two thumbs on its front paws and rough pads on all four paws to help grip slippery tree trunks. Surprisingly they have a short stumpy tail which is of no assistance to them in climbing at all. There are 2 types of koalas (South & North)with the Southern Koalas up to 1/3 larger than the northern koala.

Koalas can't see very well. They rely mostly on their hearing and smell. Baby koalas are called **joeys**. Koalas are great climbers, leapers, excellent swimmers and can run quickly on the ground but they prefer to spend most of their time in the trees.

Koalas are great climbers, leapers, excellent swimmers and can run quickly on the ground but they prefer to spend most of their time in the trees.

**What Sort of an Animal is the Koala?**

They are [|**mammals**]  ( meaning they feed their young on Milk)   and are a **Marsupial** (meaning they carry their developing young mostly in a pouch) but they are not bears. The name koala, comes from the Aboriginal saying that means "no drink". The Koala obtains enough moisture from the eucalypt leaves that it lives on Koala is an aboriginal word meaning "no water". The koala is a **marsupial** with a backward facing pouch. The baby koala climbs into its mother's pouch which has two teats and stays there for 6 to 7 months. When the koala is born, it is the size of a jellybean. The adult koala spend 19 hours sleeping or just sitting on a branch. If a flood threatens the koala's home, it is able to escape by crossing the water, because it is a very strong swimmer. The call of the koala is like wood being cut by a saw. Because this animal is rare in the wild, it is now protected by law.

**__ What Does The Koala Eat? __**
==Koalas are [|**herbivores**]. They mainly eat leaves from gum trees – and only a few varieties. The others could be poisonous. == ==Koalas eat Eucalypt leaves. Not just any type of Eucalypt as their choice changes with seasons, local conditions and personal preferences. There are about 12 types of Eucalypt leaves that a koala can feed on. Eucalypt leaves are very "bitter" and contain many toxins harmful to most animals. __ Dangers __ == The koala doesn't have many enemies. Large pythons, wedge tailed eagles, and the powerful owl take baby koalas from the branches. The dingo catches the koala when it is on the ground. One of the biggest problems for the koala is man. He clears the eucalyptus forests to make roads. That leaves the koala with fewer homes. Another danger is the bushfire. A disease which threatens the koala is chlamdia which causes infertility. The Koala prefers to move around neither in daylight or night, but rather just after sunset. Usually daytimes are spent asleep in the fork of a tree, as 80% of its time is spent sleeping For a couple of hours after sunset it will move around quiet a bit feeding and can often be heard "barking" aggressively at other koalas. It does though at times feed at night and during the day. Koalas have their own territory to live in. Each koala marks its territory with its own smell.