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KOALA

KOALA. General information :. The koala ( Phascolarctos cinereus ) is herbivorous marsupial native to Australia . Slow metabolism , extremely small brain . Koalas prefer to move around just after sunset spending daytimes asleep in the fork of a tree .

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KOALA

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  1. KOALA

  2. Generalinformation: • Thekoala (Phascolarctoscinereus) isherbivorous marsupialnative to Australia. • Slowmetabolism, extremelysmallbrain .Koalas prefer to move around just after sunset spending daytimes asleep in the fork of a tree. • Slowmoving ( canjumpfromonetreetop to another and swimwell) • Nowdays are endangered.

  3. Appearance • A small bear-like, tree-dwelling, herbivorous marsupial which averages about 9kg in weight. • Body lenght: 70-90 cm • Thickfur – usuallyashgreywithtingeofbrownsomewhere. • Large, sharp claws to assist with climbing tree trunks. • Five fingersinclude two opposablethmubs. • The arms and legs are nearly equal in length - Koalas walk on all four legs when walking on the ground JOEY • Hairless, blind, and earless. • Atbirththejoey (1g) crawlsintothepouchon the mother's belly .

  4. Habitat • Thekoalalikes to live in bushland • They are foundfrom coastal islands and tall eucalypt forests to low woodlands inland. • Queensland , New South Wales , Victoria and South Australia • Research has shown that socially stable koala populations occur only when there are favourite tree species present. Even if a selection of tree species known to be used by koalas occurs within an area, the koala population will not use it unless one or two favourite species are available. • In Australia there are over 600 types of eucalypts, but koalas will only eat 40-50 varieties with only about 10 being preferred. Within a particular area, as few as one, and generally no more than two or three species of eucalypt will be regularly browsed while a variety of other species, including some non-eucalypts, appear to be browsed occasionally or used for just sitting or sleeping in.

  5. Diet • Theonlymammal, whichcansurvive on a diet of eucalyptus leaves. • Eucalyptus leaves are very fibrous and low in nutrition, and to most animals are extremely poisonous. • The koala gets its name from an ancient Aboriginal word meaning "no drink" because it receives over 90% of its hydration from the Eucalyptus leaves (also known as gum leaves) it eats, and only drinks when ill or times when there is not enough moisture in the leaves. • Koalas have a slow metabolism and sleep for most of the day • Eatsusuallyatnight

  6. Interestingfacts • The koala is one of the few mammals (other than primates) that has fingerprints. • A male koala has a scent gland on his chest. It is used to attract females during mating season and to mark territory. • "Home range trees" define the boundaries of the individual koala’shome range. They are not always apparent to the human eye, but koalas can tell whether a treebelongsto another koala or not. • Koalas use a range of sounds to communicate with one another over relatively large distances. • Prone to the infections.

  7. Thankyouforyourattention. Natália Gubová 2.B

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