What Do Koalas Eat - Koalas Diet Facts for Kids What Do Koalas Eat – Koalas Diet Do you know what do koalas eat? The koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) is herbivorous marsupial animal that is endemic to Australia. These animals are known to reside in the eastern as well as southern Australia that ranges from Adelaide and extending to the Cape York Peninsula. In the beginning of the 20th century, the population had faced a sudden decline as a result now koalas have gone extinct in Tasmania or Western Australia. The origin of koalas is still in ambiguity however, some of the koala fossils have been discovered in northern Australia dating back to 20 million years ago. In those times, northern Australia had been covered with a dense rainforest. Besides, these fossils denote that some 50,000 years ago there existed giant koalas across Australia, though the size is still unknown. What Do Koalas Eat? Koalas predominantly feed on eucalypt leaves. These leaves have low protein and are high in ingestible stuffs and are embedded with phenolic compound that are deadly to most animals.

These bears have unique behavioral characteristics in that they are capable to remain stationary for about 16 – 18 hours a day. Most of their time is spent on sleeping. These animals are known to be aggressive towards other koalas. Cuddly Koala What Do Koalas Eat in the Wild? The koala bears primarily feed on eucalyptus leaves possibly due to an evolutionary adaptation as these leaves contain low proteins and are rich in stodgy substances. They have one of the slowest metabolic rates and koalas can stay stationery for about 16 – 18 hours in a day. Koala bears spend almost 4 – 5 hours on feeding. Most of the feeding takes place at night. They are known to consume 500 grams (18 oz) of eucalyptus leaves each day. Some of the most favorite eucalyptus leaves are Blue Gum, Swamp Gum, Grey Gum, and Tallowwood. The strong limbs of koalas support them in climbing vertically on eucalypt trunks, at the same time holding it powerfully with their forepaws.

Though they are slow movers, but they’re also capable to take a leap of 6 ft (2 m) from trunk to trunk. While eucalyptus leaves offer much less nutritional worth, it is also abundant in indigestible lignin and cellulose that contains a high proportion of toxic chemicals. On the positive side, koalas have adapted to this extreme living through devising number of ways. They ignore toxic leaves and constantly change their food tree throughout the year. Thanks to the koala’s liver, which detoxifies the poisonous chemical in the leaves. It is because of their low-energy-content diet that they have a slow movement. Of all marsupials, koalas are known to have the smallest brain in proportion to their body size, i.e. only 0.2% of their body weight. Koalas are not regular drinkers as they get enough water from eating eucalyptus leaves. They mostly eat at night however; there is no fixed time for feeding. On an average, these species consume 500 grams (18 oz) of eucalypt leaves daily. The liver is responsible for deactivating the poisonous compounds.

Apart from eucalyptus leaves, koalas also feed on variety of other leaves such as Acacia, Melaleuca, and Leptospermum. Depends on habitats and regions koalas sometime prefer to eat Blue Gum, Manna Gum, Grey Gum, and Tallowwood. This is mostly observed in koalas living in south. These bears fancy their living in arid areas like swamps, coastal waters such as River Red Gum. Koalas Diet in Queensland Koalas Diet in South Australia Highly preferred Eucalyptus spp. E. camadulensis E. leucoxylon These leaf-eating marsupials sometimes show different food preferences while living at the same site. However, scientists do not understand this feeding behavior. According to some anecdotal information an individual’s preference may in part associated with its mother. In other words, it is reasonable to assume that young koalas rely on tree species where they wean. Koalas are often observed feeding on a single leaf at a time as they employ their incisors (at the front part of the mouth) to properly grasp the leaf for further mastication.

Koalas retain their food for about 200 hours in their digestive tract which is by far the longest retention time of any mammal. What Do Koalas Eat | Video TAGS Koala Facts - About Koalas - What Do Koalas Eat? Where Do Koalas Live? Feb 6 • Earth Matters , Endangered & Threatened Species • 7496 Views • Comments Off on Koala Facts As one of the most iconic animal species endemic to Australia, the koala is well-known for its bear-like appearance with a stout body and predominately gray fur. Often found climbing in the canopy of trees, koalas are fuzzy and muscular marsupials that are the only remaining representative of their family on Earth. To learn more about this teddy bear lookalike, read on to find out some of the lesser-known fun facts about koalas! Koala Habitat Where Do Koalas Live? Found only in its endemic range of Australia, the koala appears in the highest density levels around the eastern and southern coasts or inland areas of Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, and New South Wales.

In addition, koalas have been reported in smaller population clusters around the offshore island groups of Kangaroo, Phillip, and French Island as well as the mainland Adelaide region along the Murray River. In these temperate to tropical climate areas, the koala is most likely to be located inhabiting the open eucalyptus woodlands and forests. Koala Diet What Do Koalas Eat? Known for being a leaf-eating specialist, the koala’s diet is mainly restricted to the foliage of eucalyptus species and the leaves of gum trees. Although the eucalyptus leaves are typically rather poisonous to most animal species, the koala’s digestive system has been specially adapted to be completely immune to it. Therefore, it is the only mammal besides the Great Glider and Ringtail Possum to survive on a diet of eucalyptus leaves. Unlike most mammals, the koala has an unusually long caecum in the intestines to detoxify the leaves from their poison and special cheek teeth that grind the leaves to a fine paste for digestion by microbes.

While they can feed on the leaves of other trees, koalas cannot eat more than three pounds of fresh leaves each day or they will get indigestion. Physical Traits Easily recognizable, the koala has a compact, stout, and tailless body that is adorned with round fluffy ears and a large spoon-shaped black nose. With soft wool-like fur covering the entirety of their small bodies, koalas are typically gray with white on the underbelly below the neck and long white hairs on the tips of their ears. Adapted for a life spent climbing in the tree canopy of their natural habitat, koalas have unusually long forelimbs with considerably shorter hind limbs and padded paws to make gripping easier. Adult koalas normally have a body length between 24 and 33 inches with a weight that may range from just 9 to 30 pounds. Not only are male koalas considerably larger with a broader face than females, but they also are further distinguishable by a brown gland on their chest that is able to produce a unique scent to mark trees. Females are also simply to recognize for their pouch, which has a strong, ring-shaped muscle around the opening to prevent the young joey from falling out in transit.

Behavior Primarily nocturnal, the koala spends the majority of its time in the branches of the tree canopy where it can easily feed, rest, and gain camouflage from various predators on the ground. As a fairly sedentary species, koalas usually spend most of their time sleeping up to 18 hours daily because their diet does not provide much energy. Also considered anti-social animals, koalas spend just 15 minutes each day on social behaviors. Males tend to be territorial of their spaces by dribbling urine or rubbing their chest glands against the trunks as an aggressive form of scent marking. Reproduction Both males and females reach sexual maturity at around two years of age, but the male is typically not large enough to start competing for access to mating until four years old. While younger females will typically mate once each breeding season, some of the older females will only reproduce every second year. As a marsupial, all underdeveloped newborn joeys crawl rapidly to the pouch to feed on the mother’s milk and feed on pap for six months. After leaving the pouch, the joey will ride on the mother’s belly or back until the next season’s joey emerges.

Mating Season As a time of greatly increased activity for koalas with males bellowing and fighting for the right to mate with females, the breeding season tends to run from August to February with the births subsequently taking place from October to May. Gestation Period Once a female has conceived, it is a short 30 to 35-day gestation period before the birth of the new baby called a joey, which weighs less than one gram, is totally hairless, and resembles a tiny pink jellybean. Typical Litter Size With twins being a very rare occurrence, female koalas usually give birth to a single little joey. Although the newborn is completely blind and still in the embryonic stage when born, it relies on its well-developed senses of touch and smell to help make its way to the pouch without help. Population With there being a massive decline in the koala population over the years to deliver a grim decreasing trend, the Australian Koala Foundation indicates that there is now estimated to be less than 80,000 koalas throughout its endemic continent.

Threats to Koalas Classified as vulnerable in the southeast Queensland and New South Wales regions, koalas are mostly threatened from land clearing for urbanization, which will result in the loss or degradation of their natural habitat in Australia. Since the koala is confined by its specialized diet, the species is also at risk from forest fires that can destroy its precious eucalyptus trees. According to the Australian Koala Foundation, more than 4,000 koalas each year are also killed by being attacked by dogs or hit by cars. Due to the fact that it can cause increased carbon dioxide levels and reduce protein levels in plants, climate change is another grave threat to koalas’ survival. Interesting Facts With a total of five digits on each paw, the first and second digits on the front paws are opposed like thumbs to help the koalas grip branches with ease. On the other hand, the second and third digits on the hind legs are fused together partially in order to perform grooming tasks, including removing ticks.

Koalas that are from the northern parts of the Australia continent are much smaller and have a lighter gray fur, but those from southern Australia have longer fur that is a darker and more brown color due to the colder environment. The name “koala” is believed to derive from the ancient Aboriginal word meaning “no drink” because these animals rarely have to drink water and receive up to 90 percent of their hydration from the water inside the eucalyptus leaves. Similar to humans, koalas have fingerprints and are famous for being the only other mammals on Earth besides primates to have them. 7 Animals That Eat One Food Almost Exclusively | Mental Floss 7 Animals That Eat One Food Almost Exclusively istock Like us on Facebook Occasionally, deep in the bliss of a fourth of fifth or sixth slice of pizza, you might remark, "I could eat pizza for the rest of my life." But most of us aren't dedicated enough to forgo the bounty of modern cuisine for just one foodstuff—not even pizza. Most wild animals opt for a buffet style approach, too; after all, being picky about what to eat could mean starvation. But a few animals are able to make the equivalent of the pizza pledge.

Here are a few of them. 1. Egg-eating snakes These snakes eat only amniotic eggs , which have a shell and a number of embryonic membranes. The snakes have bones, called hypapophyses, which are large and sharp enough to penetrate egg shells. After the snake cracks the shell, the yolk proceeds on to the stomach, and the snake regurgitates the shell. There are 11 kinds of egg-eating snakes in Africa and one really rare species found in India. 2. Koalas The vast majority of a koala's diet consists of the leaves from the eucalyptus plant . There are some 600 species of eucalyptus available to the koala, but the koala only eats the leaves of about three dozen varieties . The fibrous leaves, which are low in nutritional value, are also difficult to digest; the koala saves its energy by sleeping or resting up to 22 hours a day. 3. Snail kite A kite is a kind of bird, and a snail kite is a kind of bird that eats apple snails almost exclusively.

When apple snails are scarce, it will occasionally poke around at other animals (including small turtles and crayfish ) found in its habitat, which spans much of South America and parts of Florida and the Caribbean. 4. Giant pandas Some 99 percent of a giant panda's diet is comprised of the leaves, shoots, and stems of bamboo . Like eucalyptus, bamboo doesn't have a lot of nutritional value, so pandas have to eat 26 to 83 pounds of the tough, fibrous plant a day . China's giant pandas are from the animal order Carnivora, though, and so they occasionally will eat small rodents. (And in captivity, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo , the bears eat "bamboo, sugar cane, rice gruel, a special high-fiber biscuit, carrots, apples, and sweet potatoes.") 5. Monarch caterpillars Monarch butterflies, of course, eat nectar . But as caterpillars, they only eat the leaves of the toxic milkweed plant, which makes the caterpillars—and the adult butterflies—poisonous to animals. 6.

Black-footed ferrets The endangered black-footed ferret lives in the Western United States and eats mostly prairie dogs— more than 100 a year . The ferrets hunt them in their burrows and live in the abandoned digs . Occasionally, when a prairie dog isn't around (roughly nine percent of the time), the black-footed ferret will chow down on squirrels and mice. 7. Pen-tailed treeshrews Wikimedia Commons The pen-tailed treeshrew of Thailand and Indonesia only drinks the naturally fermented nectar of the bertam palm , which has an alcohol content of 3.8 percent (the equivalent of a can of light lager). The little creature drinks the equivalent of 10 to 12 cans of beer a night. Despite the fact that the animals are drinking an amount of alcohol that would be dangerous for most mammals, they don't show any signs of intoxication. All images courtesy of iStock unless otherwise noted.

Koala | San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants SUBSPECIES: adustus (northern or Queensland koala); victor (southern koala) ABOUT Have you ever heard someone refer to a koala as a "koala bear?" Well, like bears, koalas are mammals, and they have round, fuzzy ears and look cute and cuddly, like a teddy bear. But koalas are not bears. They are members of a group of pouched animals called marsupials. Marsupials include kangaroos, wallabies, wallaroos, wombats, possums, and opossums. Koalas look soft, but their fur feels like the coarse wool of a sheep. They also seem cuddly, but koalas are wild animals and don't make good pets. HABITAT AND DIET Koalas are native to southeastern and eastern Australia, living in forests of eucalyptus trees. They are basically sedentary animals that need to sleep a lot to give them time to digest their food. Being on the ground all the time would be a disadvantage, because predators could catch them easily.

Instead, they adapted to live way up in eucalyptus trees, rear end firmly planted in the fork of branches, so they can chew leaves and nap all they want to without feeling threatened. Eucalyptus forests are home, shelter, and food for koalas. The animals are built to live in the crooks of branches: koalas have a reduced tail, a curved spine, and a rounded rear end. But they do travel on the ground when necessary, to get from tree to tree or to a new area. On hot days, koalas select the coolest trees and the coolest locations in those trees (against the trunk and other low, shaded branches) for resting. On cooler days, koalas are more likely to rest farther away from the trunk where they can absorb heat from the sun. Koalas have few natural predators, although sometimes a dingo or large owl can take one. The most common direct causes of koala deaths are from motor vehicles and dogs. Koalas are definitely safest high up in trees. Koala hands and feet are designed to curl around and hang onto tree branches very effectively.

Their hands have two opposing thumbs to increase their grip (we only have one), and sharp claws to dig into bark. The feet have a toe that is really two toes fused together, which they use to groom themselves, and a toe that doesn’t have a claw that acts like a thumb for gripping. Rough, ridged pads on the hands and feet aid their grip and give them traction. Strong arm and shoulder muscles help a koala climb 150 feet (46 meters) to the top of a tree and enable it to leap between branches in the trees. Koalas are naturally solitary animals that are mostly active at night and spend most of their time napping and eating. Koalas eat only eucalyptus leaves. Eating leaves from one kind of plant may seem boring, but there are more than 600 different kinds of eucalyptus trees and, from a koala’s point of view, each looks and tastes very different! Koalas prefer the leaves of about three-dozen varieties. Eucalyptus leaves are poisonous to most animals, but koalas have special bacteria in their digestive tract that break down the toxic compounds.

They can tell which eucalyptus species are more toxic than others and only eat the less-toxic leaves. Special cheek teeth grind the tough eucalyptus leaves. Koalas don't get many calories from their diet, but they conserve energy by moving occasionally and by sleeping as much as 20 hours each day. At the San Diego Zoo, koalas are offered fresh branches from several eucalyptus species each day. These picky eaters can then select their favorite varieties. Our koalas eat 1 to 1.5 pounds (454 to 680 grams) of leaves each day. FAMILY LIFE Female marsupials have a pouch in which they carry their baby, called a joey. Many marsupials, like kangaroos, have a pouch that opens upward, toward their head. But koalas have a pouch that opens toward their hind legs. This adaptation keeps burrowing marsupials like wombats, which are close relatives of koalas, from getting dirt in their pouch when they dig. Although prehistoric koalas eventually stopped burrowing and started living in trees, they still have the primitive, back-facing pouch.

A koala, like other marsupials, begins life in a very unusual way. When it is born, it is only about the size of a large jelly bean and is not yet fully developed. In fact, a newborn joey can't even see or hear, but it sure can climb! Soon after the joey is born, it uses strong forelimbs and hands to crawl from the birth canal into its mother's pouch. The joey attaches to one of two nipples in this warm, safe place where it drinks milk and grows during the next six months. Even after it starts leaving the pouch, a joey returns there when it wants to hide or sleep. Sometimes it rides on its mother's belly. After it grows too large for the pouch, the joey climbs onto its mother's back and holds on with strong hands and feet. After about a year, it can live alone in the trees. Koala joeys learn to eat eucalyptus leaves on their own gradually. At first the joey goes after leaves with its mouth. Its early attempts look like a game of bobbing for apples, with its nose getting in the way and pushing the leaves out of reach! Fortunately, joeys keep trying until they are successful.

Eventually they figure out how to grab leaves with their hands and put them in their mouth. Just because they sleep a lot does not mean koalas are quiet, boring animals. Keepers at the Zoo say that each koala has a unique personality. Koalas make several different vocalizations, from snores to bellows to screams. Our researchers are trying to understand why male koalas bellow. Is it to tell other males to stay away or to invite females to visit? The bellow sounds like a mixture of a motorcycle revving and a pig snorting! The male koala has a bare patch on the chest where his scent gland is located. The male rubs that spot against a tree trunk or branch to mark it with his special smell. Our researchers want to learn more about this scent gland, too; what makes up the scent, and if it changes during the year. We’ve found more than 35 chemicals that make up the scent. We took samples from the males at different times of the year to see if the scents changed and discovered that male koalas are smelliest in spring, when they would be trying to attract a mate.

AT THE ZOO With their bemused expressions and adorably rounded bodies, it’s no wonder that koalas have climbed their way to the top of the “must-see” list for many of our visitors. People love the koalas’ teddy bear appearance, but our koala keepers consider them complex and sometimes challenging little creatures with a wide range of personalities and attitudes. Their sole sustenance is eucalyptus, making them hard for many zoos to keep, but perfect for San Diego, as our climate is great for growing the tall, fragrant trees. We have our own browse farm, where we grow and harvest fresh eucalyptus for our koalas to eat. The San Diego Zoo received its first two koalas in 1925, as a gift from the children of Sydney, Australia, to the children of San Diego. They were named after characters in a famous Australian children’s story by May Gibbs—Snugglepot and Cuddlepie—and were soon major celebrities.

Over the next 34 years, the Zoo received koalas in 1928, 1951, and 1959, but it was not until 1960 that the first koala was born here. It was such a momentous occasion that the Zoo received the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Edward Bean Award for the Most Notable Birth for the first birth of a koala in the US. Our Zoo population took off from there, with 12 koalas born between 1960 and 1968, when breeding stopped. Australia had always been highly selective in regard to the export of any native wildlife, and a total ban on the export of koalas was enacted in the 1960s. When our last male, Teddy, died in 1976, Australian airline Qantas offered to help us obtain more koalas. Teddy had appeared in some of that airline’s commercials. It also helped that 1976 was a bicentennial year for the US, and the Australian government waived the export ban for this one occasion.

Later that year we received two male and four female koalas: Waltzing, Cough Drop, Matilda, Audrey, Pepsi, and Coke. At the time, we did not know how successful the San Diego Zoo would be in breeding this group of koalas. Today, the San Diego Zoo has the largest colony of koalas outside of Australia, with 20 living at the Zoo and more than 30 on loan to other zoos in the US and Europe. It is our Zoo’s tradition to give the koalas an Australian Aboriginal name drawn from a characteristic or personality trait, or from a place. For example, Mundooie’s name means “foot,” because that’s the first part of him keepers saw in his mother’s pouch. Yabber’s name means “talk,” as her antics inspire much chatter among her keepers! One of our most famous koalas was Goolara, or “moonlight,” an albino koala born here in 1985. His birth surprised keepers and created a great deal of excitement because albino koala births are rare.

In 1997, another albino, Onya-Birri, which means “ghost boy,” was born. In August 2009, a tiny joey no larger than a gummy bear was discovered on the ground of our koala yard by one of the keepers. The baby was amazingly still alive but needed help quickly! The joey was warmed up on a rubber glove filled with warm water and then rushed, along with its mother, Nariah, to the Zoo’s Jennings Center for Zoological Medicine. The little one was attached to one of the nipples in Nariah’s pouch and the pouch was closed with a few loose sutures to make sure the joey didn’t fall out again. Five days later, Nariah was rechecked and we found that her joey was still alive and had visibly grown. Today, Tonaleah is a thriving female koala who survived a rough start with style! Our Australian Outback opened in May 2013. It's a wonderful habitat for our large koala colony, as well as for other Aussie animals. Some of our koalas are used as animal ambassadors.

The koalas can be seen along spacious walkways around a Queenslander-style “house” that serves as the koala care center, where you can see keepers preparing eucalyptus browse for the koalas. Because male koalas can be territorial, they have their own perches in one area, while the more social females and their babies, called joeys, share another area. The elevated walkways bring you to eye level with the koalas as they perch in their forest of eucalyptus. Human children can practice their koala climbing skills on a play structure that features life-size koala sculptures. Some of our koalas serve as animal ambassadors. You may see them with a keeper at special Zoo events or even on television, helping to spread the word about koala conservation. You may see them with a keeper at special Zoo events or even on television. CONSERVATION The koala is one of Australia’s most recognizable symbols, but its survival hangs in the balance. Formerly thought to be common and widespread, koalas are now vulnerable to extinction across much of its northern range.

Despite their broad appeal, significant gaps in our knowledge of this species remain that create big challenges for the conservation and management of the koala and its habitat. In the past, koalas were killed for their coats. In fact, from 1919 to 1924, eight million koalas were killed. Today, the koala is threatened by predation from domestic dogs and a disease that has spread through most of the population. In addition, some koalas get run over by cars. But the one thing that koalas and other wildlife can’t protect themselves against is the loss of their habitat. A combination of cooperative managed-care programs, research, and support for habitat conservation projects are needed to ensure the survival of koalas. We also strive to learn more about wild koalas. We have a researcher studying a group on St. Bees Island, off the eastern coast of Australia, trying to learn how much land koalas need to find enough food and shelter and what their vocal communications may mean. Putting all the pieces together has provided a much deeper understanding of koala breeding biology. Our work has resulted in the Australian government declaring St.

Bees a national park to further protect the koalas that live there. Yet a primary objective of our research program has been to contribute to the successful conservation and management of koalas across their entire range, not just on St. Bees. As we have developed our knowledge base, we are proud to have achieved this goal. By investigating the seasonality of koala births on St. Bees and applying our knowledge to other sites, we have discovered a significant relationship between koala births and rainfall in central Queensland, Australia. This finding is crucial to understanding the impacts of climate change on many different Australian species and has highlighted the key factors needed to protect koala habitat and plan for the long-term future of wild populations. There is still plenty of work to be done! Here at the Zoo, we’ve learned over the years that female koalas are choosy about mate selection. We can’t just pair koalas because they make a good match genetically! Ongoing research with our Zoo koala colony is examining male traits, such as scent and sound, in order to examine the effects that they may have on female mate choice and reproduction.

Since 1983, the San Diego Zoo has shared koalas with zoos around the world through our Koala Loan Program. To make sure the traveling koala is comfortable, a keeper journeys with the animal to its new home and stays there until the koala settles in. These furry travelers are so important they don't get checked into the baggage hold—instead, they often travel first class! If eucalyptus does not grow well at the koala's new zoo home, fresh eucalyptus branches are shipped to them from our zoo twice a week. These koala loans allow thousands of people to observe and enjoy these unique marsupials. Koalas in the wild benefit from the loan program, too; funds from this program are donated to koala habitat conservation in Australia. Sounds Eucalyptus Facts for Kids | KidzSearch.com Species About 700 Eucalyptus is a genus of trees . There are over 700 species of eucalypt, and almost all of them are in Australia . Eucalyptus can be found in almost every part of the Australia, and they are adapted to many different habitats .

Eucalyptus is one of three similar genera that are commonly referred to as "eucalypts", the others being Corymbia and Angophora . Many species, but far from all, are known as gum trees because they exude copious sap from any break in the bark . Eucalypts have many local names, like 'gum trees', 'mallee', 'box', 'ironbark', 'stringybark' and 'ash'. Contents Description Flowers and leaves Eucalypts have special flowers and fruits that no other trees have. When it flowers a bud cap made of petals grows around the flower until it is ready to open. Then the bud cap falls off to reveal a flower with no petals. The woody fruits are called gumnuts. They are roughly cone-shaped and open at one end to release the seeds. Fine specimen of a Eucalyptus Nearly all eucalypts are evergreen but some tropical species lose their leaves at the end of the dry season. The leaves are covered with oil glands. These oils are often used to treat coughs and colds. Many Eucalypts also change the shape of their leaves as they get older. Young eucalypts have round leaves.

When one to a few years old, the leaves of most kinds become longer and spearhead or sickle shaped. A few kinds keep the round leaf shape all their lives. Most species do not flower until the adult leaves starts to appear. Bark The bark dies every year. In smooth-barked trees most of the bark falls off the tree, leaving a smooth surface that is often colourfully marked. With rough-barked trees the dead bark stays on the tree and dries out. Many kinds of eucalyptus trees have smooth bark at the top but rough bark lower down. These different kinds of bark are used to arrange the eucalypts into groups - this is useful because there are hundreds of kinds of eucalypts, and breaking down the group in this way makes the group easier to understand. The thick, protective bark of Eucalyptus quadrangulata The different groups are: Stringybark - consists of strands which can be pulled off in long pieces. It is usually thick with a spongy texture. Ironbark - is hard, rough and deeply furrowed. It is soaked with dried sap exuded by the tree which gives it a dark red or even black colour.

Tessellated - bark is broken up into many distinct flakes. These flakes are like cork and can flake off. Box - has short fibres. Ribbon - this has the bark coming off in long thin pieces but still loosely attached in some places. The pieces can be long ribbons, firmer strips or twisted curls. Eucalyptus regnans exceeding 80 metres, in an area of extensive logging, Tasmania Tall timber Today, specimens of the Australian Mountain Ash , are among the tallest trees in the world at up to 92 metres in height [1] and the tallest of all flowering plants; taller trees such as the Coast Redwood are all conifers . There is evidence that at the time of European settlement of Australia some Mountain Ash were indeed the tallest plants in the world. Frost Most eucalypts cannot survive frost, or can only stand light frosts down to -3 °C to -5 °C. The hardiest eucalypts are the so-called Snow Gums such as Eucalyptus pauciflora which is capable of withstanding cold and frost down to about -20 °C.

Two sub-species (wild varieties) of this tree can survive even colder winters. Several other kinds, especially from the high plateau and mountains of central Tasmania , have produced extreme cold-hardy forms. It is seed from these hardy strains that are planted for ornamental trees in colder parts of the world. Animals and eucalypts Koala eating eucalyptus leaves An oil found in eucalyptus leaves is a strong, natural disinfectant, which is used in some medicines, but can be poisonous if too much is taken. Several marsupials , such as koalas and some possums , are partly resistant to it. These animals can tell which plants are safe to eat by their smell. Eucalypts make a lot of nectar , providing food for many insects . Dangers Eucalypts have a habit of dropping entire branches off as they grow. Eucalyptus forests are littered with dead branches. The Australian Ghost Gum Eucalyptus papuana is sometimes called the "widow maker", due to the high number of tree-felling workers who were killed by falling branches.

Many deaths were actually caused by simply camping under them, as the trees shed whole and very large branches to save water during droughts . For this reason, you should never camp under large eucalyptus branches. Fire On warm days eucalyptus oil vapour rises above the bush to create the well-known distant blue haze of the Australian landscape. Eucalyptus oil catches fire very easily, and bush fires can travel quickly through the oil-rich air of the tree crowns. The dead bark and fallen branches are also flammable. Eucalypts are well adapted for periodic fires - in fact most species are dependent on them for spread and regeneration . They do this in several ways: by sprouting from underground tubers, hidden buds under their bark and from seeds sprouting in the ashes after the fire has opened them. How fire helped the spread of eucalypts Eucalypts began between 35 and 50 million years ago, not long after Australia and New Guinea separated from Gondwana .

Their coming coincides with an increase in fossil charcoal deposits (which might mean that fire was important to them even then), but they remained a minor component of the rainforest until about 20 million years ago, when the gradual drying of the continent and lessening of soil richness led to the growth of a more open forest type, with mainly Casuarina and Acacia trees. With the arrival of the first humans about 50 thousand years ago, fires became much more frequent and the fire-loving eucalypts soon came to account for roughly 70% of Australian forest. Eucalypts grow back quickly after fire. The two valuable timber trees, Alpine Ash and Mountain Ash, are killed by fire and only grow back from seeds. The same fire which had little impact on forests around Canberra has resulted in thousands of hectares of dead forests. Cultivation and uses Eucalypts have many uses which have made them important. Because of their fast growth, the main benefit of these trees is the wood. They provide many uses, such as planting in parks and gardens, timber, firewood and pulpwood . Fast growth also makes eucalypts suitable as windbreaks .

Eucalypts draw a very large amount of water from the soil. They have been planted (or re-planted) in some places to lower the water table and reduce the amount of salt in the soil. Eucalypts have also been used as a way of reducing malaria by draining the soil in such places as Algeria , Sicily [2] mainland Europe and California . [3] Drainage removes swamps which provide a habitat for mosquito larvae , but such drainage can also destroy harmless habitats by accident. Eucalyptus oil is refined from the leaves by steaming. It can be used for cleaning, deodorising, and in very small amounts in food supplements, especially sweets , cough drops and decongestants. Eucalyptus oil is an insect repellent (Fradin & Day 2002). The nectar of some eucalyptus produces high quality honey . In the western United States the flowering is in late January, before the flowering of other nut and fruit trees; this means that its nectar can be easily made into its own kind of honey, which is said to have a buttery taste. The ghost gum's leaves were used by Aborigines to catch fish.

Soaking the leaves in water releases a mild tranquiliser which stuns fish, making them easy to catch. Eucalyptus is also used to make the digeridoo , a musical wind instrument made popular by the Aborigines. Problems caused by eucalypts Eucalypts were first introduced to the rest of the world by Sir Joseph Banks , botanist on the Cook expedition in 1770. They have since been introduced to many parts of the world. Several species have become invasive (spreading out of the area they were planted in) and are causing major problems for local wildlife. Spain In Spain , they have been planted in pulpwood plantations , replacing native oak woodland. As in other such areas, while the original woodland supports kinds of native animal life, the eucalypt groves cannot support the local wildlife, leading to silent forests and the decline of wildlife populations. On the other hand, eucalyptus helps several industries, such as sawmilling, pulp, and charcoal making. California In the 1850s many Australians traveled to California to take part in the California Gold Rush .

Much of California has similar climate to parts of Australia, and some people had the idea of introducing eucalyptus. By the early 1900s thousands of hectares of eucalyptus were planted with the encouragement of the state government. It was hoped that they would provide a renewable source of timber for construction and furniture making. However this did not happen partly because the trees were cut when they were too young and partly because the Americans did not know how to process the cut trees to prevent the wood from twisting and splitting. [4] One way in which the eucalyptus, mainly the blue gum, proved valuable in California was in providing windbreaks for highways, orange groves, and other farms in the mostly treeless central part of the state. They are also admired as shade and ornamental trees in many cities and gardens. Eucalyptus forests in California have been criticized because they drive out the native plants and do not support native animals. Fire is also a problem. The 1991 Oakland Hills firestorm which destroyed almost 3,000 homes and killed 25 people was partly fueled by large numbers of eucalyptus in the area close to the houses.

[5] In some parts of California eucalyptus forests are being removed, and native trees and plants restored. Some people have also illegally destroyed some trees and are suspected of bringing in insect pests from Australia which attack the trees. [6] Brazil In 1910 the eucalyptus were introduced on Brazil for timber substitution and the charcoal industry. Regrettably the long term effects were not studied, and in the present the eucalyptus is causing problems because of its high consumption of water. This causes the soil to dry out, killing many local plants which the local animals need to survive. References Koala Bears Diet | what do koala bears eat Koala Bears Diet and what they eat Koalas are herbivorous and feed exclusively on certain eucalyptus leaves. An adult can eat up to 500 g of leaves daily. Since the leaf of eucalyptus has large quantities of water, koalas almost do not drink water, the reason for which they were named “Koala”; in the language of the Aborigines, koala means “who do not drink.” Koalas are very picky about their food. Koalas love leaves.

An adult koala is a leaf - eater. It eats eucalyptus leaves. When koalas are not sleeping, they are usually eating or looking for food. They do not have to look far, since their diet is made up almost entirely of eucalyptus leaves. Over 600 types of eucalyptus trees grow in Australia, but a koala will eat the leaves of only two or three kinds. It occasionally eats leaves from other trees as well, such as tea and cherry trees. Not all koalas like the same kinds of leaves. A koala’s taste depends partly on where it lives. Each koala has its own favorite local trees from which it eats. Having a restricted diet like this causes big problems for koalas when their favorite food source is under threat or in short supply. A single koala may eat just two types of eucalyptus all of its life. This is partly because it does not like to change. Once a young koala starts to eat the leaves of the trees in its home range, it tries to feed on the same kind, year after year.

Each region of Australia has its own types of eucalyptus, and most woodlands contains only a few of these. So koalas in the northeast eat different eucalyptus leaves than those in the southeast. Daily Diet A 1- year – old koala eats about 11 oz. (300g.) of food each day. A full – grown koala, about 3 years old, can eat up to 1.1 lb. (500g.) daily The koalas are one of nature’s most fussy eaters. It will only eat the leaves and young shoots of the eucalyptus tree. It also eats the tree’s stems, flowers, and bark, but it likes the leaves best. And not just the leaves of any eucalyptus tree. Of the more than seven hundred varieties of eucalyptus, the koala will only eat from about three dozen of them. If you are thinking that eucalyptus is highly nutritious because they are almost the only food that koalas eat, you are wrong.

The leaves of eucalyptus have little protein, lots of material that is hard to digest, and are actually poisonous to most animals. Bacteria in koala’s stomach break down the poisonous oils in the leaves so they do not harm the koala. The koala must eat between 1 and 1.5 pound (454 and 680 grams) of eucalyptus leaves a day to provide it with enough nutrition to survive. That is a lot to eat for a small animal. The koalas spend s about two to four hours a night chewing the tough leaves into a thin paste that it can swallow. When its stomach is full, it will store more leaves in its fat cheeks. Much of the other eighteen or more hours of a koalas’ day are spent sleeping. All that eating is hard work, and the koala’s poor diet provides it with a limited amount of energy. A change of Diet As soon they are born they are fed on its mother’s milk. Shortly after its eyes open, it starts to eat “pap”. These are special droppings produced by the mother, made from eucalyptus leaves she has partly digested.

The baby’s stomach cannot digest fresh leaves, which are very tough. But pap contains leaves that the mother’s stomach has begun to break down. They are in a form that the Joey can digest. Pap is the first step toward a life of eating leaves. But the young koala still takes milk from its mother’s teat every day. On milk alone, the Joey grows slowly. Once it begins to eat pap, growth is much faster. Young koalas learn to identify food by copying their mother as she eats. Did You Know... Some of the koala’s favorite kinds of eucalyptus tree are blue gum, swamp gum, and gray gum. Eucalyptus leaves provide the koalas with just about all the water its body needs. In the wild, koalas rarely, if ever, take a drink of water. The word koala in the language of the Australian Aborigines, the country’s native people, means “no drink.” A koala’s complex digestive system allows it to break down the poisons and tough fibers found in the leaves it eats. Poisonous food All eucalyptus leaves contain poison, but some have more than others.

Koalas sniff each leaf and inspect it carefully before eating it. They can tell which leaves are the most poisonous and avoid them. Koalas are tough eaters; eating eucalyptus leaves would kill most animals, but a koala can eat them without getting sick. It uses its strong jaws and ridged teeth to chew the leaves slowly and break them down as much as possible. The leaves then pass though a koala’s special digestive system, which takes out the poisons. Eucalyptus leaves contain few nutrients, so a koala must eat about a pound (500 g) of leaves per day in order to stay health. Eating soil Koalas sometimes climb down to the ground to eat soil and gravel. These provide natural minerals and help to break up the tough leaves inside the koala’s stomach. Drinking All plants contain water, but it can be difficult to reach. The koalas’ slow and efficient digestive system absorbs all moisture from its food. Eucalyptus leaves are spear – shaped and contain mostly water. In the morning these leaves are also covered with dew. Koalas get so much water by just eating that they rarely take a drink.

Every once in a while, a koala might climb down to the ground for a drink. But it doesn’t stay on the ground for long. As soon as it can, it climbs back up into the safety of the trees. These are some of the koala’s favorite kind of eucalyptus trees: River red gun Why Koalas Hug Trees Why Koalas Hug Trees By Tia Ghose, Staff Writer | June 3, 2014 07:01pm ET MORE Koalas live in trees in Australia and eat mostly eucalyptus leaves. Credit: CBriscoe The mention of a koala bear often conjures up an image of an adorable spoon-nosed creature cocking its head to one side while clinging to a tree. Now, scientists have figured out why the iconic Australian marsupials hug trees: The trunks help the koala bears keep cool, according to a new study. "It can be a really useful way of getting rid of heat on a hot day," said study co-author Michael Kearney, an ecologist at the University of Melbourne in Australia.

Tree huggers Given that koalas spend so much time in trees — the marsupials live in Australia's woodlands where they munch on leaves and sleep — nobody wondered why they hugged the trunks. People just thought they were taking a break on a more stable spot after eating leaves in the branches, Kearney said. [ Marsupial Gallery: A Pouchful of Cute ] As such, the discovery came as a surprise. Kearney and his student, doctoral candidate Natalie Briscoe, were trying to predict how the woodland creatures on French Island, near Melbourne, would regulate their body temperatures as the continent heats up due to climate change . The region is cool most of the year, but during the summer, the temperature routinely spikes above 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius), Kearney said. Briscoe measured wind and shade levels using a portable weather station, but didn't find any striking trends. Then she pointed to an infrared thermometer, which measures temperature based on thermal radiation, at the tree trunks the koalas were hugging. The trunks were considerably cooler than the ambient air temperature — sometimes by as much as 9 degrees F (5 degrees C), Kearney said.

She also noticed the koalas clinging to acacia trees, even though they normally eat eucalyptus leaves . [ See Images of the Tree-Hugging Koalas ] "As it got hotter the koalas went farther down the trees and started to really hug onto the tree trunks," Kearney told Live Science. "That seemed strange to us until we figured out that the trees are a bit cooler." Stay cool Koala bears pant to keep cool, letting evaporated moisture from their mouths carry heat away from their bodies. When the team modeled koala bear heat transfer, they found the tree-dwellers save half the water they would have used panting if they hug trees instead. Koalas get most of their water from their diet, but because eucalyptus leaves are laced with a toxin, the koalas can eat only a limited amount before the toxin harms the animals, Kearney said. So tree-hugging could be critical to their survival on hot days, by allowing them to cool off without wasting precious water through panting, Kearney said.

It's not clear exactly why their preferred tree trunks are cool, but one possibility is that they pull in a lot of groundwater, which stays closer to the annual average air temperature, rather than the current air temperature, he said. Climate change planning Koalas' food (and hugging) trees will change their range with the hotter and drier weather brought by climate change, Bill Ellis, a wildlife researcher at the University of Queensland in Australia, who was not involved in the study, wrote in an email to Live Science. But the new study suggests that food may be a smaller consideration in preserving koala habitat than previously thought, he said. "As long as we plant trees koalas will eat, perhaps the other trees we plant just need to provide the right mix of shelter and heat sink characteristics," Ellis said. "It's quite an interesting concept, but non-native trees might be the future for koalas — as long as they also have the right fodder." Farther north in the koala's range, the air is muggy and it feels hotter , so scientists should see how tree-hugging plays out in in different locations in the koala's habitat, Ellis said.

"Humidity means that the power of evaporation for cooling is reduced," Kearney said. So tree-hugging may be even more important up north, where evaporative cooling doesn't work as well, he said. The study was published today (June 3) in the journal Biology Letters. Follow Tia Ghose on Twitter and Google+ . Follow Live Science @livescience , Facebook & Google+ . Original article on Live Science . Editor's Recommendations

Question: What well-known animal eats mostly Eucalyptus leaves?
Answer: Koala