# Koala — Facts, Threats & Conservation

*Phascolarctos cinereus*

> The koala is a Vulnerable eucalyptus-eating marsupial native only to Australia, where habitat loss, disease and bushfire have made its eastern populations Endangered under national law as of 2022.

**IUCN status:** Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List; listed Endangered under Australian federal law in Queensland, New South Wales and the ACT (2022)  ·  **WARN range:** Australia

## Quick facts
| Fact | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Lifespan | About 13–18 years in the wild |
| Weight | 4–15 kg (males up to 50% larger than females) |
| Body length | 60–85 cm (24–33 in) |
| Diet | Herbivore; almost entirely eucalyptus leaves |
| Gestation | 33–35 days |
| Young | Usually a single joey, occasionally twins |
| Baby name | Joey |
| Group name | No true social group; sometimes called a colony where ranges overlap |
| Activity | Mostly nocturnal; rests up to 18–20 hours a day |
| CITES | Not listed on CITES appendices |

## Scientific classification
- **Kingdom:** Animalia
- **Phylum:** Chordata
- **Class:** Mammalia
- **Order:** Diprotodontia
- **Family:** Phascolarctidae
- **Genus:** Phascolarctos
- **Species:** Phascolarctos cinereus

## Conservation status
- **Status:** Vulnerable
- **Population:** No precise global figure; widely cited estimates range from the low tens of thousands to several hundred thousand, with sharp declines in northern (Queensland and NSW) populations
- **Trend:** Decreasing
- **Assessed:** 2014 (IUCN Red List)
- **CITES:** Not listed on CITES appendices
- Globally assessed by the IUCN as Vulnerable; in 2022 the Queensland, New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory populations were listed as Endangered under Australia's Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.

## Key facts: Koala
- Koalas are marsupials, not bears, and carry their young in a pouch like kangaroos and wombats.
- They are eucalyptus specialists, eating the leaves of roughly 30 preferred species from more than 600 eucalypts.
- The species lives only in Australia, in forests and woodlands across the eastern and southern states.
- The IUCN lists the koala as Vulnerable, with a decreasing global population trend.
- In 2022, koala populations in Queensland, New South Wales and the ACT were listed as Endangered under Australian federal law.
- Major threats include habitat clearing, drought, disease (especially chlamydia), vehicle strikes and severe bushfires.

## What is a koala and where does it live?
The koala is a marsupial endemic to Australia, meaning it is found in the wild nowhere else on Earth. Despite the common nickname 'koala bear,' it is not a bear at all; its closest living relatives are wombats, and like all marsupials it raises its young in a pouch. Koalas inhabit eucalyptus forests and woodlands stretching from northern Queensland down through New South Wales and into Victoria and South Australia. They are highly arboreal, spending almost the entire day and night in trees, where they rest, feed and sleep for up to 18–20 hours a day to conserve the limited energy their leaf diet provides. Individuals occupy overlapping home ranges centred on favoured food trees, and densities vary enormously between regions, from healthy southern populations to severely depleted northern ones.

## Diet and adaptations to a eucalyptus life
Few animals are as specialised as the koala. It feeds almost exclusively on eucalyptus leaves, which are tough, low in nutrients and laced with toxins that would sicken most mammals. Koalas cope through a long digestive tract and a large caecum full of microbes that ferment and detoxify the foliage, plus a slow metabolism and long rest periods. They select around 30 preferred eucalyptus species out of more than 600, and local populations often specialise on whichever species grow nearby. Their cheek teeth are adapted to shear and grind fibrous leaves, and they obtain most of their water from foliage, though they will drink during heatwaves and drought. This deep reliance on specific trees is also their greatest vulnerability: when those trees are cleared or burned, koalas have little ability to switch foods or move elsewhere.

## Why koala numbers are falling
Koala declines are driven by a stack of overlapping pressures. The clearing and fragmentation of eucalyptus woodland for agriculture, forestry and urban growth removes the trees koalas depend on and forces them to cross roads and open ground, where vehicle strikes and dog attacks take a heavy toll. Disease is a major factor in many populations, particularly chlamydia, which can cause blindness, infertility and death, and koala retrovirus, which weakens the immune system. Drought and extreme heat add further stress, and catastrophic bushfires, such as those of the 2019–2020 fire season, killed or displaced large numbers of koalas and destroyed vast areas of habitat. Northern populations in Queensland and New South Wales have fallen sharply, which is why those populations were uplisted to Endangered under Australian federal law in 2022, even though the species globally remains classified as Vulnerable.

## Conservation and what helps koalas recover
Protecting and reconnecting eucalyptus habitat is the single most important action for koala survival. Conservation efforts focus on safeguarding remaining forest, restoring corridors between fragmented patches, planting preferred food trees, reducing land clearing, and managing threats such as roads, dogs and disease. Wildlife hospitals and carers rehabilitate sick, burned and injured koalas, while research into chlamydia vaccines and population monitoring aims to slow disease spread and track recovery. Because the koala depends so completely on intact, connected woodland, habitat protection delivers the broadest long-term benefit, sheltering not only koalas but the many other species that share Australia's eucalyptus ecosystems.

## Koala vs other marsupials people confuse it with
| Animal | Family | Main diet | Lifestyle | Conservation note |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Koala | Phascolarctidae | Eucalyptus leaves | Tree-dwelling (arboreal) | Vulnerable; eastern populations Endangered (2022) |
| Wombat (common) | Vombatidae | Grasses and roots | Ground-dwelling, burrowing | Least Concern overall |
| Kangaroo (red) | Macropodidae | Grasses and herbs | Ground-dwelling, hopping | Least Concern |
| Sugar glider | Petauridae | Sap, nectar and insects | Tree-dwelling, gliding | Least Concern |

## What WARN does
The koala lives only in Australia, which is outside the five countries where the World Animal Rescue Network currently funds field projects: Pakistan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brazil and Colombia. WARN does not fund koala rescue or habitat work, and we will not claim otherwise. We publish this guide as free educational and search content that supports our broader mission of building global awareness for threatened wildlife. The conservation lessons here, especially how habitat loss and fragmentation push specialist species toward extinction, mirror the challenges we do work on in our funded regions. As WARN is still at an early launch stage, we are transparent about exactly where donations go and where they do not.

Koalas live outside the regions WARN currently funds, so your gift will not be spent on koala projects. If this guide inspired you, you can support the nearest relevant WARN work, protecting wildlife habitat in the countries where we operate, through our Support Habitat Protection appeal, where habitat safeguards help threatened species much as they would for koalas.

## Frequently asked questions: Koala
### Is a koala a bear?
No. The koala is a marsupial, a pouched mammal, and is not related to bears. The nickname 'koala bear' comes from its bear-like face and ears, but its closest living relatives are wombats.

### What do koalas eat?
Koalas eat almost nothing but eucalyptus leaves. They favour around 30 species out of more than 600 eucalypts and have a specialised gut that detoxifies and ferments the tough, low-energy foliage.

### Where do koalas live?
Koalas are found only in Australia, in eucalyptus forests and woodlands across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory.

### Are koalas endangered?
Globally the IUCN lists the koala as Vulnerable. In 2022, the populations in Queensland, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory were listed as Endangered under Australian federal law due to steep declines in the species' northern range.

### Why are koala populations declining?
The main causes are habitat clearing and fragmentation, drought and extreme heat, disease such as chlamydia and koala retrovirus, vehicle strikes, dog attacks, and severe bushfires that destroy eucalyptus habitat.

### What is a baby koala called?
A baby koala is called a joey. It is born tiny and undeveloped after a gestation of about 33 to 35 days, then continues developing in its mother's pouch for roughly six to seven months.

## Sources
- [IUCN Red List: Phascolarctos cinereus (Koala)](https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/16892/166496779)
- [Wikipedia: Koala](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koala)
- [Australian DCCEEW: Conservation Advice for Phascolarctos cinereus (Koala) combined populations](https://www.dcceew.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/76478.pdf)
- [IFAW: Koalas – Habitat, Conservation Status and Threats](https://www.ifaw.org/animals/koalas)
- [San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance: Koala Fact Sheet](https://ielc.libguides.com/sdzg/factsheets/koala)

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Full guide: https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/wildlife-guides/koala