What is the environment of the koala?

Answer 1

Koalas are indigenous to Australia and live in tropical to temperate eucalypt forest and woodlands and can be found along the eastern and south-eastern coastal regions. They live in eucalyptus trees and are mostly nocturnal and eat certain types of eucalypt leaves exclusively. They breed from September to February. Females breed from 2 years of age, and males from 3-4 years after they have established their own territory. Males are extremely aggressive during mating periods. Thirty-five days after mating, the female produces one joey weighing about 0.5 grams and about 2 cm long. Koalas have a woolly light to dark grey fur with brown and white patches and a cream belly. They have a broad head with small eyes, large furry ears and a distinctive large black nose. Females has two teats and a rear opening pouch. Northern koalas can grow to 740 mm and 9 kg for males and 720 mm and 7.25 kg for females.

Southern koalas can grow to 820 mm and 15 kg for males and 730 mm and 11 kg for females. They can live for up to 18 years for females and a bit less for males. They spend up to 20 hours per day sleeping and the rest eating. Koalas can leap up to 2 metres and can swim. They curl up into a ball to keep warm and spread out to keep cool.

Answer 2

The Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) is a marsupial mammal and is indigenous to Australia. Their closest relative is the wombat.

They live in eucalyptus trees and eat only a few types of gum leaves from which they get all nutrients and water requirements. Eucalyptus leaves are tough, toxic and low in nutrition, but the koala has developed a stomach which is capable of removing the toxins from where they are filtered out by the liver. The caecum completes the process by changing the eucalyptus leaves into digestible nutrients. The caecum is similar to the human appendix.

The koala must eat over a kilogram of leaves per day to meet its energy requirements. Eucalyptus leaves contain approximately 50% water, 18% fibre, 13% tannins, 8% fat, 5% carbohydrates, 4% protein and 2% minerals. Koalas have been seen feeding in 120 kinds of eucalypt tree including Manna Gum, Swamp Gum, Blue Gum, Forest Red Gum and Grey Gum.

Koalas spend 16-20 hours a day sleeping. Koalas' diets aren't high in energy, so they must spend time conserving it. Besides sleeping, koalas spend a few hours (1-3) feeding on eucalyptus, and another 1-3 hours grooming themselves, looking for mates (during breeding season), or moving from tree to tree.

Answer 3

Koalas are indigenous to Australia and live in tropical to temperate eucalypt forest and woodlands and can be found along the eastern and south-eastern coastal regions. They live in eucalyptus trees and are mostly nocturnal and eat certain types of eucalypt leaves exclusively.

Answer 4

The koala lives mostly within the temperate zones. Its habitat is eucalypt woodland and bushland, but of the several hundred species of eucalyptus ("gum trees"), koalas prefer about 60 varieties, with their specific preferences being limited to a couple of dozen. After that, there are still just one or two key species that a koala population must have to thrive, even if the number of trees of that species is only small.

Koalas can be found along the eastern and south-eastern coastal regions. They live in cool temperate zones, right up to hot, sub-tropical zones. They live in eucalyptus trees and are mostly nocturnal and eat certain types of eucalypt leaves exclusively. Koalas live in bushland habitats, as long as there are abundant eucalyptus trees of the sort they prefer. They are found on coastal islands, in tall eucalypt forests, bushland and low woodlands inland.

Koalas are not found in rainforests, nor in grasslands or deserts. These biomes do not support the eucalyptus trees which koalas favour. They are also not found in Alpine or snowy regions.

Answer 5

Koala's habitat is eucalyptus bushland. This type of forest can be thick or a little more sparse. Besides eucalyptus trees, there tend to be callistemon (bottle brush), melaleuca and wattle trees.

Answer 6

Koalas, which are not bears at all, do not necessarily have harsh living conditions, althoug it is true that they sometimes endure terrible heatwaves in southern Australia, which often lead to devastating bushfires.

It lives mostly within the temperate zones. Its habitat is eucalypt woodland and bushland, but of the several hundred species of eucalyptus ("gum trees"), koalas prefer about 60 varieties, with their specific preferences being limited to a couple of dozen. After that, there are still just one or two key species that a koala population must have to thrive, even if the number of trees of that species is only small.

Koalas live in cool temperate zones, right up to hot, sub-tropical zones. They live in eucalyptus trees and are mostly nocturnal and eat certain types of eucalypt leaves exclusively. They are particular to Eastern Australia. Koalas live in a range of habitats, as long as there are abundant eucalyptus trees of the sort they prefer. They are found on coastal islands, tall eucalypt forests, bushland and low woodlands inland.

Koalas spend most of their time nestled in the branches of their favoured trees. They do not shelter in tree hollows or nests, but sit comfortably wedged in between tree branches.

Koalas are not found in rainforests, nor in grasslands or deserts. These biomes do not support the eucalyptus trees which koalas favour. They are also not found in Alpine or snowy regions.

Answer 7

Koala are endemic to Australia, living in eastern and southern Australia, with a few new colonis introduced to Western Australia (where they once lived, but are no longer found naturally). They do not live in Tasmania, Australia's southern island state.

Koalas are not bears at all, nor are they related to the bear family. Koalas are arboreal (tree-dwelling) marsupials which are specially adapted to live in trees. Koalas have very strong claws suitable for gripping trees and climbing. The shape and design of their fingers enables them to act like opposable thumbs. Between their first and second "fingers" is a large gap, which enables them to also grip tree branches comfortably, whilst their hind legs have one toe set at a wide angle. They also have toes with thick pads which enable them to sit comfortably in a tree all day.

Koalas are found most commonly in temperate bushland consisting mostly of eucalyptus trees. They do not live in tropical areas. They feed on only a few types of gum leaves from which they get all nutrients and water requirements. Koalas will not eat all types of eucalyptus, feeding on just 14 species as their primary food source, specifically, the subgenus Symphyomyrphus. They also occasionally eat the gum tree blossoms, and sometimes the bark.

Baby koalas, called joeys, are born extremely undeveloped, like all marsupial young. They crawl by instinct, drawn by the scent of mothers' milk, to the backwards-facing pouch, where they latch onto a teat and remain, secured in place by the teat which swells in their mouth. Joeys drink mother's milk during their first 6-7 months of life. After 30 weeks, the mother produces a substance called pap, a specialised form of the mother's droppings which, having passed through her digestive system, give the joey the enzymes it needs to be able to start digesting the tough gum leaves, making an easier transition for the baby koala to start eating eucalyptus leaves.

Koalas live in complex social communities where there is a dominant male. Territorial disputes occur (and can be heard at night through guttural grunts in suburban areas where koalas may live) when a younger male is trying to assert his dominance. Koalas have a number of trees in their home range, which may overlap with other koalas' trees, but they can peacefully occupy the same tree within their range. Apart from that, although they live in communities, they do not have a great deal of interaction with each other, except during breeding season.

The main threats to koalas are habitat loss, and the introduction of domestic pets, especially dogs.