KOALA

Koalas are not bears—they’re marsupials. Learn about koalas’ unique traits, including
six opposable “thumbs,” downward-facing pouches, and a tendency to sleep nearly all
day in tree branches.
Common Name: Koala
Type: Mammals
Diet: Herbivore
Average life span in The Wild: 20 years
Size: 23.5 to 33.5 inches
Weight: 20 pounds
Vulnerable. At high risk of extinction in the wild.
Though often called the koala “bear,” this cuddly animal is not a bear at all; it is a
marsupial, or pouched mammal. After giving birth, a female koala carries her baby in
her pouch for about six months. When the infant emerges, it rides on its mother's back
or clings to her belly, accompanying her everywhere until it is about a year old.
Koalas live in eastern Australia, where the eucalyptus trees they love are most plentiful.
In fact, they rarely leave these trees, and their sharp claws and opposable digits easily
keep them aloft. During the day they doze, tucked into forks or nooks in the trees,
sleeping for up to 18 hours.
When not asleep a koala feeds on eucalyptus leaves, especially at night. Koalas do not
drink much water and they get most of their moisture from these leaves. Each animal
eats a tremendous amount for its size—about two and a half pounds of leaves a day.
Koalas even store snacks of leaves in pouches in their cheeks.
Koalas need a lot of space—about a hundred trees per animal—a pressing problem as
Australia's woodlands continue to shrink.

10 FACTS ABOUT KOALAS!

1) Koalas are found in the eucalyptus forests of eastern Australia. They have grey fur
with a cream-coloured chest, and strong, clawed feet, perfect for living in the branches
of trees!
2) Cuddly critters, koalas measure about 60cm to 85cm long, and weigh about 14kg.
3) They are in fact marsupials. A group of mammals, most marsupials have pouches
where their newborns develop.
4) When an infant koala – called a joey – is born, it immediately climbs up to its
mother’s pouch. Blind and earless, a joey uses its strong sense of touch and
smell, as well as natural instinct, to find its way.
5) A joey grows and develops in the pouch for about six months. Once strong enough,
the youngster rides around on its mother’s back for a further six months, only using the
pouch to feed.
6) Koala’s grow up to become big eaters, shifting up to one kilogram of eucalyptus
leaves in a day! They are fussy, too, and will select the most nutritious and tastiest
leaves from the trees where they live.
7) These magnificent mammals get their name form an Aboriginal* term meaning, ‘no
drink’. It’s believed this is because koalas get almost all their moisture from the leaves
they eat, and rarely drink water.
8) Koalas don’t have much energy and, when not feasting on leaves, they spend their
time dozing in the branches. Believe it or not, they can sleep for up to 18 hours a day!
9) Although these beautiful creatures are protected by law, and not classed as an
endangered species, their habitat is under threat. Sadly, around 80% of koala habitat
has been lost to human homes, drought and bushfires.
KANGAROO
Classification: Mammal
Lifespan (in wild): Up to 23 years
Weight: Around 90kg
Body size: Over 2m in height
Top speed: 56km/h
Diet: Herbivore – mainly grass
Habitat: Australian deserts and grasslands
Kangaroos are found in Eastern Australia, where they live in small groups called troops
or herds, typically made up of 50 or more animals. When they fight, they punch and
kick with powerful blows, and will sometimes even bite. Males will often fight each
other over access to females.
Female kangaroos sport a pouch on their belly (made by a fold in the skin) to cradle
baby kangaroos, called joeys. Newborn joeys are tiny, measuring just 2.5 centimetres,
or about the size of a grape – cute! After birth, joeys travel unassisted through their
mother’s thick fur to the comfort and safety of the pouch. A newborn can’t suckle or
swallow, so the kangaroo mum uses her muscles to pump milk down its throat. At
around 4 months, the youngster emerges from the pouch for short trips, and at ten
months, it’s mature enough to leave the pouch for good.
Kangaroos are herbivores and like to chew on grasses, herbs and shrubs. Besides
humans and wild dogs called dingoes, kangaroos face few natural predators.
Kangaroos are pretty cool animals, even though they might look a little strange and
rather different to other animals. Kangaroos don’t walk, they jump everywhere!
Kangaroos’ bodies are designed for jumping! They have short front legs, powerful back
legs, huge back feet and strong tails. All of these help them to jump around and their
tail balances them.
Female kangaroos usually only have one joey at a time.
Kangaroos are fast movers, usually travelling at around 20 to 25 miles (32 to 40
kilometers) per hour. However, when necessary, kangaroos can travel at 40 miles (64
kilometers) per hour! That’s pretty fast!
Kangaroos are brilliant jumpers, and can leap as high as 10 feet (3 meters). That’s
much taller than a fully grown man! They’re good at long jumps too, and have been
recorded leaping distances of 23 feet (7 meters). If three tall men lay down in a line, a
kangaroo could jump over all of them. That is a seriously big long jump.
Where do Kangaroos Live?
Kangaroos live in Australia. Different types of kangaroos live in different parts of
Australia. Some kangaroos live in rainforests, some live in forests and some live in
woodlands.
Some make their homes on the floor and some make their homes in trees!
There are more than 30 million kangaroos currently living in Australia. That’s a lot of
kangaroos! There are road signs in Australia warning drivers of kangaroos in the road.

ALPACA
Alpaca facts:
While some people might accidentally get these interesting animals confused with
llamas, alpacas are actually a totally different animal.
While they might look similar, alpacas are much smaller than llamas.
Another big difference between llamas and alpacas is how they work with people.
Llamas have always been used as beasts of burden, while alpacas are strictly bred for
their wool.
Alpacas are kept in herds in many countries in South America, usually high up in the
Andes Mountains.
Fun Alpaca Facts
There are no wild alpacas. Every alpaca belongs to a farmer, who raises them so that
their wool can be made into clothing.
There are only two different breeds of alpacas.
Alpacas are related to more than llamas. They belong to the Camelidae family, which
also includes Camels.
Most alpacas are 48-54 inches tall and can weigh anywhere from 106 to 185 pounds.
Since they are a completely domesticated animal, alpacas can live for a pretty long
time. If they are taken care of really well, they can live for up to 20 years or so.
Another way you can tell an alpaca from a llama (other than their size, of course) is
their ears.
If you look closely, you will notice that alpacas have shorter, straighter ears than a
llama.
Just don’t get too close! Both of these animals are known to spit if they get annoyed.
Yuck!
Alpaca wool is considered hypoallergenic. It is also much softer than sheep’s wool, and
a whole lot less itchy!
Not only that, but their wool is also water and flame-resistant. How cool!
There are about 52 different color variations for alpaca fur.

KOMODO DRAGON
Komodo dragon facts:
Komodo Dragons are reptiles. This means that they are covered in dry, scaly skin, hatch
from eggs, and are cold-blooded.
Cold-blooded means that they lizards cannot regulate their internal temperature, and
must instead depend on their climate to determine how hot or cold they are.
Komodo Dragons are the largest species of lizards in the world. They can grow to be up
to ten feet long from snout to tail and can weigh up to 300 lbs. They are a type of
monitor lizard.
These lizards have a very strong sense of smell. They have been known to track their
prey from many miles away.
Komodo Dragons can be found on four islands in Indonesia. These islands are hot and
dry, with grasslands and savannahs.
They usually will dig holes, which they stay in during the night.
Komodo Dragons were only discovered about 100 years ago. Of course, they have been
around for much longer than that. Scientist thinks that they may have been around for
millions of years already.
These lizards are brown and green in color, which helps them to blend into their
surroundings. They have short legs and a long tail. They also have 60 sharp teeth in
their mouth.
Their teeth are serrated. This means that they have a cutting edge on them, which
makes it much easier or the lizards to tear meat off of their prey.
Komodo Dragons are carnivores. This means that they only eat meat. They have been
known to eat deer, pigs, and water buffalo. They have even been observed eating each
other.
Though these lizards are fast sprinters, they are not distance runners.
They will usually lay in wait for their prey to come close enough and then sprint out to
capture them.
Komodo Dragons are not venomous, though some people think they are. They actually
have deadly bacteria in their saliva.
There are over 50 different kinds of bacteria in their saliva. One of the bacteria
prevents wounds from clotting, which can lead to a dragon’s prey bleeding to death.
If an animal is bitten by a Komodo Dragon, the wound will fester. The animal will then
get sick and die, leaving behind a meal for the hungry lizard.
Dragons have been known to calmly follow their prey for miles after they have bitten
them. They know that their prey won’t get far, as victims of a dragon’s bite don’t
usually last for more than a day.
These lizards can eat up to 80% of their body weight in a single meal. Once they have
eaten their fill, however, they won’t need to eat again for a long time.
Komodo Dragons do not take care of their young. After the babies hatch, they quickly
climb up the nearest tree.
They do this so that they are not in danger of being eaten by an adult Dragon.
Komodo Dragons are currently endangered. This is mostly due to hunting and loss of
habitat. Luckily, they are under the protection of the Indonesian government.

PORCUPINE
Porcupine facts:
Porcupines are mammals. This means that they have fur, are born life, and drink milk
when they are babies.
It also means that they are warm-blooded. Warm-blooded animals are able to regulate
their body temperature.
This means that no matter the temperature of the environment that the porcupine is in,
their internal temperature will always be the same. This allows them to live in much colder
climates than cold-blooded animals.
Porcupines are rodents.
Porcupines belong to the rodent animal family. This means that they are related to
squirrels, mice, rats, and rabbits.
Rodents are known to gnaw or chew, on hard surfaces constantly. This is because their
front teeth never stop growing.
If they are not worn away or chewed down, they will grow so large that the rodent
could not eat or close their mouth.
Porcupines can be found in both North and South America, as well as in Africa.
They are adept climbers and prefer to live in trees. This means that they are a mostly
arboreal animal.
If they cannot find a den in a tree, they will make one on the ground.
They might live in a cave, hollow log, or under a shed.
Porcupines are not graceful animals and prefer to stay hidden when possible.
What are quills?
They have a highly specialized defense system to help keep them safe from predators.
They can be covered in as many as 30,000 quills, which are like spikes on their tail.
These quills are very sharp, and perfect for defense.
The quills are mostly found on a porcupine’s tail. The rest of the porcupine’s body is
covered in soft hair. Most of the time, the quills on a porcupine will lie flat. However, if
a porcupine feels threated, they will turn their quills towards the threat and raise them
up. Porcupines are not able to shoot their quills out in defense.
If a predator gets too close, however, the quills will easily detach from the porcupine
and get stuck in the predator.
The quills are barbed on the end, like a fish hook. This makes them very difficult to
remove, and very painful. Porcupines will grow new quills to replace the old ones.
How big are porcupines?
Porcupines are not large animals. They weigh anywhere from 12 to 35 lbs. They can be
up to four feet in length, though most of them are usually only about three feet long.
Porcupines are vocal creatures. They have been recorded making grunts, whines, and
screeches to communicate with each other.
Fun Facts About Porcupines
Like most forest dwellers, porcupines are nocturnal. This means that they prefer to
sleep during the day and be up and moving during the night.
Porcupines do not live for very long in the wild, as they usually only live about five to
seven years.
In captivity, however, they have been known to make it all the way to 18 years.
Porcupines are herbivores. This means that they only eat plants. They will eat things
like flowers, grass and leaves.
Females only ever give birth to one baby at a time. The baby will stay with their mother
for about four months before they begin living on their own. Baby porcupines are called
“porcupettes.”