Koala

The koala or, inaccurately, koala bear is an arboreal herbivorous marsupial native to Australia. It is the only extant representative of the family Phascolarctidae and its closest living relatives are the wombats. Koalas are well-known for their large round head, big furry ears and big black nose. 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. The Australian Koala Foundation estimates that there are less than 100,000 Koalas left in the wild, possibly as few as 43,000. Summer brushfires in 2019-20 killed at least 6,400 of the animals, as rescuers worked desperately to save them and treat their injuries. “There have been many pressures on the koala. Koalas or Koala-like animals probably first evolved on the Australian continent during the period when Australia began to drift slowly northward, gradually separating from the Antarctic land mass some 45 million years ago. Fossil remains of Koala-like animals have been found dating back to 25 million years ago. They are also quite smart, according to a new study that has tracked the movements of the Australian animal in suburban Brisbane. Griffith University researchers from The Environmental Futures Research Institute team comprehensively monitored 130 man-made koala crossings over a 30-month period.

Scientific name: Phascolarctos cinereus

Lifespan: 13 – 18 years (In the wild)

Length: 2 – 2.8 ft. (Adult)

Mass: 8.8 – 33 lbs (Adult)

Cartoon: Noozles imdb.com

Higher classification: Phascolarctos

Rank: Species