Koala Bear

Koala BearThe koala bear is probably Australia's favourite marsupial.

A marsupial is a pouched mammal and in the case of baby koalas the tiny 2cm long creature climbs into its mother's pouch and remains there safe and sound for 5-6 months, feeding on milk. Once this little one leaves the pouch it rides 'piggy-back' on its mum for another six months and at eleven months it becomes independent but generally stays fairly close to the mother for another few months.

Koalas in Southern Australia measure head-body length - males 78cm, and females 72cm. Males weigh 12kg and females 8kg. In Northern Australia koalas are considerably smaller. Their lifespan is around 13 years in the wild and 18 in captivity.

Koalas have a specialised diet of eucalyptus leaves and for this reason it has been a problem in the past for zoos outside Australia to keep them. However, nowadays koalas can be kept in zoos worldwide although sometimes the eucalyptus has to be flown especially from Australia to feed them. (Don't mention the carbon footprint). Koalas are active for about five hours a day and three hours are spent eating - more often than not at night.

Koalas have a bear-like appearance and beautiful thick grey fur which is tinged with brown on the upper parts. It is white on the underside. They have long sharp claws which enable them to climb tree trunks and they are one of the few mammals to have fingerprints - in fact their prints are very similar to those of humans. Some years ago there was a market for koala's thick fur but in the 1920s there was public outcry and people began to strongly oppose the exportation of these pelts. Thankfully these lovely animals are now fully protected and they are no longer endangered. In common with most Australian animals, koalas cannot legally be kept as pets either in Australia or elsewhere in the world. Only wildlife carers and occasionally research scientists are granted permits to keep them and these creatures have to be returned to the wild as soon as they are fit and old enough to survive.

Here's another animal that we find irresistable - thank goodness Australians are so protective of them. Sorry, but you can't even think about having one as a pet so the next best thing is to adopt Hansa's happy koala. He is so very, very soft and cuddly and you won't have a problem with getting hold of eucalyptus either!

Toys That Teach A great part of Hansa's mission is to educate children and adults alike about the world's animals and so, as well as being very close plush recreations of the original, every Hansa toy comes with a 'Toys That Teach' tag, which describes each animal's:

- Habitat
- Lifestyle
- Gestation period
- Care of young
- Eating habits

So you not only get a wonderful soft toy but also an understanding of the animal and its behaviour in its very own kingdom.