World Travel 4 Indians

Koala in Australia

Among the various unique animals found in the world, koala is a very special one. Koala is a very sweet and innocent type of animal. This herbivorous animal is mostly found in the forests of the coastal regions of Australia.

The unique herbivore belongs to the marsupial family of Phascolarctidae. The scientific name of this beautiful creature is Phascolarctos cinereus.

There are various species of animals in this family. However, Koala is the thickest animal in this huge family.

Koalas similarities to a teddy bear often gave them the name "koala bear", but there is no relation to the bear family. Koalas have soft thick fur often grey or brown in colour with a white belly, a large hairless nose, round ears and almost no tail.

They have only one pair of lower incisors in the lower jaw and only one well-developed pair in the upper jaw (there are no canines), though if they are sufficiently provoked by an over friendly human the Koala will not hesitate to use them.

Adelaide and the Cape York Peninsula are especially known for Koalas. Koalas are attracted to the regions, which are characterized with heavy rainfalls. However, the western region of Australia has poor stock of these beautiful animals.

The word "koala" literally means "no water". This marsupial mammal is very much loved in the entire Australia and it is more popular as a "bear", though in fact it is not a bear.

Rather Koala is a distant relative of the Wombat. Both of these animals have been in existence on the planet for the last 15 million years. The features of a koala include a big head; ears covered with white hairs, a nose and fours legs.

Koalas are skillful climbers, getting up tree trunks by clasping them with the sharp claws of their 'hands' and then bringing the hindfeet up together in a bounding movement.

When walking on a branch koalas grip with the first toe of the hindfoot and with the first two digits of the 'hand' opposed to the other three.

Koalas only feed on leaves of certain types of eucalypt. Eucalyptus leaves have a very high fibre and low protein content.

They contain strong smelling oils, phenolic compounds and sometimes even cyanide precursors which makes them unpleasant or even poisonous for most mammals. A fully grown koala eats a bit more than one kilogram of leaves a day.

To cope with this diet, koalas had to make several adaptations, most notably develop an enlarged caesum - first part of the large intestine, in which microbial fermentation takes place.

The whole body is covered with fur. The animals are light enough and they weigh almost 14 kilograms. The main food for these Koalas is the eucalyptus leaves and they also eat wooden stems of some other trees. They are family oriented. One male Koala houses the other family members.