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Wild Animals A-Z

 

Koala

Phascolarctos cinereus
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Koala picture
Built for Climbing: In the wild, koalas are found exclusively in the large eucalyptus forests of eastern Australia, where they spend almost their entire lives in trees. Their bodies are very well-adapted to the life of a tree-dweller. For instance, each of their forepaws has three fingers with long, sharp claws for climbing and two opposable fingers for grasping branches. Each of their hind paws has two climbing fingers, one grasping finger and two grooming fingers, the latter of which specialize in removing twigs and ticks that get tangled in their dense fur.

A Barrier of Fur: Their thick, wool-like fur is the perfect camouflage. The gray to light brown color matches the bark of eucalyptus trees, concealing the fleshy koalas when predatory birds are on the prowl. Their fur is so thick and cushiony that koalas can sit on pointy branches for hours and hours and never feel pain.

A Toxic Diet: Koalas feed almost exclusively on eucalyptus leaves, which are highly toxic. Of the approximately 350 species of eucalyptus, they can digest only 20 and prefer a mere five.

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FACTS: Even More Koala Facts

  DID YOU KNOW?

Tough on Toxins: Bacteria in the koala's intestines neutralize the many toxins found in eucalyptus leaves, allowing it to take advantage of a food source that is essentially unavailable to other animals.

Convenient Pouch: Unlike most marsupials, the koala's pouch opens to the rear instead of upward. This allows the joey to crawl directly in after it leaves the womb, unlike say kangaroo joeys which have to crawl up the front of the pouch to enter.

Koala Coats?: In the early 1900's, koala coats were all the rage in Australia. In fact, some 8 million koalas were killed in just over 5 years to supply the demand.

 
 
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How Stuff Works

Do Koalas Smell Like Cough Drops?
Koalas eat eucalyptus. Many cough drops contain eucalyptus. So does that mean koalas smell like cough drops? Find out at HowStuffWorks.com.
 

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