The koala is a well-known marsupial. Mainly because of its very cuddly appearance. However, it is better not to pet them, because they can bite and scratch a lot. They eat daily in about 4 hours. They fill the other 20 hours almost entirely with sleeping and dozing in the trees. The pouch has the opening at the back. When the baby is born, it crawls towards the pouch, where it stays for about five to seven months. When the young are bigger, they usually hitch a ride on their mother's back. A koala cub is called a 'joey' in Australia.
Of all marsupials, the koala is the hardest eater. It eats almost nothing but eucalyptus leaves, and then only from six of the hundreds of species of eucalyptus trees. The young eucalyptus leaves contain a lot of prussic acid, which is toxic to the koala. This is why a koala restricts itself to the old, hard-to-digest leaves. It can smell exactly which leaves it can and cannot eat. Bacteria (micro-organisms) in their digestive system help break down the tough leaf food. A koala almost never needs to drink; the moisture in the eucalyptus leaves is enough for it.
Photographer who specializes in birds, mammals, landscapes, professional bike racing and portraits. I preferably use my Nikon cameras D850 en D750... Read more…