Save the Koala Day 2018 - Jesse Granger: Bushranger

Today is Save the Koala Day!

Many people believe that koalas are some sort of small bear thanks to their nickname of “koala bear”. In reality, the koala isn’t related to the bear at all. Koalas are marsupials (meaning they carry their young in a pouch) and their closest living relative is the wombat. They got their nickname because they look like little teddy bears!

Life Down Under

Koalas are only found in Australia. Crikey! They can be found hanging around in eucalyptus trees. They spend a majority of their time eating and sleeping in these trees. In fact, the only time they leave them is when they spot a tree with more food! They also move around their trees to find a sunnier spot when they’re cold or a cooler spot when the sun is beaming down on them.

Koalas eat for about 3 hours a day and have to rest for about 18 hours. They need so much rest because the only thing they eat are eucalyptus leaves which take a ton of energy to digest. Koalas are very picky. Not only do they exclusively eat eucalyptus leaves, but they will only eat 50 out of the more than 700 types of eucalyptus leaves. Eucalyptus is poisonous to most animals but koalas have chemicals in their stomachs that are able to dilute that poison.

FUN FACTS ABOUT THE KOALA

Just like baby kangaroos, baby koalas are called joeys.
A joey will stay in its mother’s pouch until it is to big to fit inside of it anymore. Then it will crawl onto its mother’s back and ride around snacking on eucalyptus leave!
Koalas rarely drink water! They are able to stay hydrated by eating their eucalyptus.
Look at your hands. Each finger has a unique fingerprint. The only other animals to have these are primates and koalas.
Koalas have strong muscles lining their pouch so they can keep their joeys in them while they climb around the trees.
Koalas have very sharp teeth and claws. Watch out!
Koalas seem slow and slothful but they can actually run as fast as a rabbit!
Koalas are also great at swimming.
Probably the weirdest thing about koalas is that they have two thumbs on each hand which they use to grip trees and grab food.

THREATS TO THE KOALA

There are a few different threats to the koala. Natural predators include the dingo and large owls that will attack the koalas or snatch them from trees to eat them. Domesticated dogs have also been known to attack wandering koalas. Humans are the #1 threat to koalas at the moment, though. A while back, koalas were on the brink of extinction because people would hunt and kill them for their fur. The koalas have since bounced back but are still in danger. Development near koala habitats has caused a rise in vehicle-related deaths of koalas as they venture out onto the road. Their habitats are also shrinking due to deforestation.