How do koalas get drunk?

Answer 1

Koalas do not eat bamboo. 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.

Answer 2

No. This is a complete fallacy.

Eucalyptus leaves are low in proteins and almost indigestible. Koalas have a very low metabolic rate, which is needed to help them digest the leaves and ensure they get as much nutrition as they can from a diet on which other mammals cannot survive. This is why they sleep so much.

Answer 3

Koalas do not get drunk. It is a myth that the eucalyptus leaves they ingest have a somnolent, or drugging, effect. Koalas have a slow metabolism that enables them to digest the virtually indigestible gum leaves.

Answer 4

Koalas eat eucalyptus leaves because they are specially adapted for this purpose. Koalas live in eucalyptus trees and eat only a few types of gum leaves from which they get all nutrients and water requirements. They also occasionally eat the gum tree blossoms. Eucalyptus leaves are tough, toxic and low in nutrition, but the koala's digestive system is able to remove the toxins, filtering them out by the liver. The caecum, which is similar to the human appendix, changes the eucalyptus leaves into digestible nutrients.

It is a complete fallacy that koalas get drunk on eucalyptus leaves. It is impossible for them to get drunk or drugged on them, as eucalyptus leaves do not contain elements to cause this. Eucalyptus leaves are low in proteins and almost indigestible. Koalas have a very low metabolic rate, which is needed to help them digest the leaves and ensure they get as much nutrition as they can from a diet on which other mammals cannot survive. This is why they sleep so much.