Endangered animal koala bear Though often called the koala "bear," this cuddly animal is not a bear at all, it is a marsupial. Koalas live in eastern Australia, where the eucalyptus trees they love are most plentiful. In fact, they rarely leave these trees. That is why they are usually called "treehuggers". Koalas have thick, grayish fur, with white on their chests, inner arms, and ears. They have large furry ears and leathery noses.The koala has large, sharp claws to assist with climing tree trunks. The koala is one of the few mammals that have fingerprints. Koalas do not live in big groups, they rather prefer to be alone. Koalas consume eucalyptus leaves and bark from 12 different eucalyptus tree species. Koalas rests motionless for about 16 to 18 hours a day, sleeping most of that time. They can be aggressive towards each other, throwing a foreleg around their opponent and biting.
Plant Life A long time ago Australia was separated form other countries. This movement caused the difference of species, plants and animal form the other countrys. The water controls the type of vegetation in a country. The two main types of vegetation are the eucalyptus or gum trees and acacia or wattles. The eucalypts are found all over Australia. There are more than 500 varieties of gum trees in Australia. Australia is the home of some 600 species of acacia. These trees develop smaller, leathery leaves to avoid loss of water. Australia has over 155 million hectares of native forest, about 80 per cent of which are eucalypt. Animal life Australia is a continent sized museum of ancient animals. Anteater and platypus are the two of the strangest animals in the world. They are really reptile mammals. They have hair like cats and dogs, but they lay shelled eggs like snakes and turtles. And they are found only in Australia.
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