Everybody seems to love the ever so cute and cuddly Koalas; one of Australia's classic iconic...icons. There are a couple common misconceptions about the koalas that do not exist here in Australia. They know better here.
First, despite their popular name, the koala bear, is not a bear in any way. They may look like you're beloved teddy, but they are in fact a marsupial. Their closest relative is the other so cute, yet dangerous Australian animal, the wombat.
Next, and most popularly, despite their cuteness, koalas are not cuddly! They are quite the opposite in fact. Due to their incredibly low-protein and highly toxic diet of only eucalyptus leaves, their brains have slowly deteriorated over generations to nearly nothing. They have one of the smallest body mass to brain mass ratios of all mammals. Essentially, a koala is a creature of pure instinct. Since the koala has evolved such an unlikely, horrible niche in Australia, they merely sit in trees and eat/sleep. Eucalyptus leaves can't really sustain much more. When disturbed though, koalas go nuts, since everything is a threat to their literally pea-sized brains. And they have these big, sharp claws for climbing trees and giant incisors for ripping tough eucalyptus leaves off the trees. If you try to hug a koala, prepare to be disemboweled. They're an Australian animal for crying out loud, what would you expect?
Two fun facts about koalas:
-Except for primates, koalas are the only animals that do not have fingerprints! In fact, their fingerprints are difficult to decipher from humans. I'm surprised no Aussie serial killers have used the "A koala disemboweled my baby!" defense.
-Female koalas have two sets of sex organs! But watch out, koalas are suffering from a widespread outbreak from Clymydia, so keep your hands to yourself boys!
Wow, I bet you all feel informed now.
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