Some marsupials are native to Australia. A marsupial is any mammal that the female has a pouch in which it rears and carry’s it’s young in its belly. The babies are born immature and through early infancy they are fed and carried in the mother’s pouch eg. Kangaroo Australia is home to 120 species of marsupials including Kangaroos, Koalas and Wombats.

Marsupials live in deserts, plains and forests depending on their species.

Kangaroos are the largest of all marsupials. A red kangaroo can grow to 180cm tall which is as tall as a grown teenager. Kangaroos are extremely strong and can protect themselves with their clawed hands or their big long tails. A baby is born after only 38 days and resembles a little worm It remains in the pouch for nine months. A kangaroo has short fur and big feet. The red kangaroo can weigh up to 85 kg and it is the largest marsupial in the world. The kangaroo usually rests in the shade during the day and comes out to eat in the late afternoon and night when it is much cooler. They eat mostly grass and surprisingly needs very little water to survive. A kangaroo can survive without drinking for months.

Koalas are cute and cuddly looking and soft to touch. The koala has bear like features and sometimes is confused as belonging to the bear family. The babies are born after 35 days a weight less than 1 gram. Once inside the pouch, baby koala attaches itself to one of the two teats and stays there drinking milk for the next six months. The koala eats only eucalyptus leaves and also lives in the gum tree. The koala sleeps all day long and is only awake for 2 hours each day and in that time all they do is eat and take care of their young.. They look very cute and cuddly but they have really long nails and if provoked can attack. People come from all over the world to see our famous koalas. A koala has long fur and can weigh from 4 to 9kg and can grow from 70-90cm in length. They con live as long as 17 years.

The wombat is a cuddly soft furry animal which looks a bit like a pig. The wombat lives in a burrow under ground and eats nuts and leaves. It has ears like a kangaroo. Wombats are nocturnal and are extremely strong. The average wombat is 1m long and ways 25 kg and can live between 5 and 30 years. A baby wombat is born after only 21 days and lives in the pouch for six months. Their preferred habitat is dry and wet forest, woodland and coastal heaths.

Most off our native Australian animals are on our emblems. The red kangaroo is on the Australian emblem and also the Northern Territory, the Southern Hairy Nosed Wombat is South Australia’s, and the Koala is Queensland.