Key facts:
- Koalas only eat leaves
- Koalas are nocturnal
- Koalas are not bears, they are marsupials
Australia is full of furry, feathered, and scaly animals, not found anywhere else in the world. Meet some common Australian animals and improve your English language skills with .
Learning notes
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- Watch with subtitles and translated transcripts by switching your language in the top right navigation.
Transcript
Have you ever heard grunting noises coming from the trees?
It could be a koala!
If you live on the edge of the city you might be lucky and see a koala.
But there are not many of them left.
Let's learn how to protect them.
Living with Aussie Wildlife
Koalas
Koalas have big grey ears, a big black nose, thick fluffy fur and big strong claws.
Koalas live on the east coast and parts of South Australia.
They live in tall eucalyptus trees.
Koalas live alone and sleep for 80% of the time. They are nocturnal. This means they sleep in the daytime and are active at night.
Koalas grunt when they are looking for a mate.
Koalas are not bears, but marsupials. This means they have a pouch.
Their babies are called joeys. A joey lives in its mother's pouch for about six months. After a year they find their own trees to live in.
Koalas eat eucalyptus leaves. They eat a lot of leaves and must move from tree to tree.
When koalas come down to the ground, they can be hit by cars and attacked by dogs.
If you see a koala that appears sick or injured, keep your distance and call a wildlife rescue group for help.
You can help koalas by driving carefully, keeping your dog on a leash, and by protecting the trees that they rely on for their food and habitat.
Koalas are now endangered in Australia. Endangered means there are not many of them left. It is very special to see one in the wild.
Quiz time!
A baby koala is called...
..a Billy, Joey or Fred?
A baby koala is called a Joey.
Koalas only eat leaves and are very shy.
They are one of Australia's most loved animals and are a protected species.
We love living with koalas!
Credits
Living with Aussie Wildlife is a project made by SBS in partnership with and .
