Koala  (Phascolarctos cinereus)

Species information

Videos and images

Authentication

Authenticated (04/05/05) by Jo Knights Manager (Education) of the Australian Koala Foundation.
http://www.savethekoala.com

Glossary

  • Marsupial: a diverse group of mammals characterised by their reproduction. The embryo is born 11-35 days after conception. The tiny neonate crawls into the marsupium (pouch) and attaches to a teat where it stays for a variable amount of time. They also differ from placental mammals in their dentition.
  • Nocturnal: active at night.
  • Vestigial: a characteristic, often reduced in form, with little or no contemporary use, but derived from one which was useful and well developed in an ancestral form.

References

  1. IUCN Red List (April, 2009)
    http://www.iucnredlist.org
  2. Strahan, R. (1998) The Mammals of Australia.Reed New Holland /Australian Museum, Sydney.
  3. Macdonald, D. (2001) The New Encyclopedia of Mammals.Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  4. Australian Koala Foundation (May, 2005)
    http://www.savethekoala.com
  5. Animal Diversity Web (November, 2004)
    http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Phascolarctos_cinereus.html
  6. Logan, M. (2001) Evidence for the occurrence of rumination-like behaviour, or myrecism, in the koala (Phascolarctos cinereus). Journal of Zoology, 255 (1): 83 - 87.
  7. New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service – Koala (November, 2004)
    http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/npws.nsf/Content/The+koala
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