Female koalas are fully mature when they are about two years of age, and males when they are three or four. The females usually give birth to one joey each year, but the older ones will produce an offspring only every two or three years.
One koala eats half a kilo of eucalyptus leaves a day, and it takes several hectares to support just one animal. Indeed a koala's "home range" could be larger than 30 hectares. Koalas are said to have no natural enemies, but they are vulnerable to large birds of prey, and if they live close to human settlements, to cats and dogs that kill for recreation.
(note: one hectare equals 10,000 square meters)
But, the greatest threat to the koalas' survival however, is man.
Ever since the British colonised Australia, the settlers have moved inland, clearing up land for settlement. The koalas' habitat continues to shrink today as logging advances, agriculture, mining and urban development expand, while the landscape is criss-crossed by roads, resulting in many road kills of all species of native animals, including the koala.
Over 2 million koalas were killed between 1908 and 1927. Although not officially classified as endangered, the population of Australian koalas has dropped by 90% in less than a decade!
Indeed, koalas are now protected by law, but their homes and food aren't. Without their homes and their food, how are they "protected"?
The koala needs our help before they are threatened with extinction. Learn more about their plight from the Australian Koala Foundation?
