Koalas are one species of marsupial. They
are a type of mammals that have a pouch at their belly. Koalas live in
Australia, New Zealand, and also can be found at Papua Island.
Koalas have brownish-grey or
silver-grey fur. They have a big pink or black nose too. Koalas have sharp claws
which help them to climb. They can hear and smell very well, but they cannot
see very well at all.
Koalas are mostly active at night. They
live in trees, and they don’t like to be on the ground. They mostly eat leaves,
bark and fruit of some Eucalyptus trees. Koalas don’t drink often, they get
most of their water from the leaves they eat.
Koalas live alone most of the time, but
they have a social hierarchy with the other koalas who live near. Their life is
so simple, because they spend about 20 hours per day for sleep on trees and
only 4 hours per day for do their activities. Koalas also spend their life on
the trees because they cannot to move fast and also for avoid their predator.
After a pregnancy of 35 days, the newly
born koala is about a quarter inch long. it is born with no ears, eyes, or
hair. It crawls into its mothers pouch on its own. After 12 months the young koala
is old enough that it doesn’t go into its mother's pouch or need milk anymore.
The female koala can have another baby then. Young koalas usually leave their
mothers when they are 18 months old, but if their mother doesn’t have another
baby, they will stay until three years. Koalas become mature when they are
about two years old, but they will have their first baby after more than two
years.
The koala isn’t an endangered species,
but it is a near vulnerable species. One reason is the loss of habitat, which
means that koalas have less space to live. In some places there are very few
koalas left. But there are some places, such as French Island (Victoria), with
too many koalas that eat too much. Therefore, the eucalyptus trees and other
animals are in danger. A study looking at koala numbers at 1800 sites for 20
years, shows that the number of koalas is falling. The study, by the Australian
Koala Foundation, estimates that there are only about 50,000 koalas left. Now,
koalas are one species who will be extinct.
