subject: Koala Stuffed Animal [print this page] Much like the teddy bear, a koala stuffed animal is one plush toy that is simply too hard to resist. Whether you see one on television, in person, or on a shelf in a toy shop, the urge to reach out and touch it most often gets the better of you and instead of one koala stuffed animal you likely end up with two, three, or more!
Koalas are the only living member of the marsupial family Phascolarctidae and are the largest arboreal leaf-eaters. In order for them to successfully eat toxic eucalyptus leaves their bodies have developed special chewing and digestive anatomies over millions of years. In a 2009 study published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, new findings about eucalyptus leaf eating were revealed about two species of koala that lived some 24 to five million years ago. Essentially, the study states that these two species did not eat the same leafy eucalyptus diet modern koalas survive on today.
It is believed that modern koalas adapted to eating a eucalyptus diet much later on, most likely after Australia began to drift north. As a result, its rainforests retreated making Eucalypts the single dominant tree in most of the forests and woodlands of Australia. In order to prove their study, researchers from the University of New South Wales made anatomical comparisons between koalas, the brush-tailed possum and two fossil species [of koala]. The fossil species were uncovered in Queensland, Australia from the Riversleigh World Heritage site where it was revealed that the backs of the koalas skulls between the modern and fossil species were quite similar, while their teeth, palate, and jaws, were different.
In order for modern koalas to have adapted to existing on a sole diet of eucalyptus leaves, their cranial anatomy underwent significant changes, particularly when it came to the face. In addition, the study uncovered that prehistoric and modern koalas were both able to produce loud bellows because they both share similarities in the middle and inner ear. However, these similarities were not as exaggerated in the fossil species of koala as compared to the modern koala. Modern koalas are known for being extremely vocal animals with the low frequency vocalizations they are able to produce, they can be heard through the vegetation 2,264 (or .497 miles) feet away.
While a koala stuffed animal can certainly be played with, it's really one of those plush toys that is best for hugging. With its soft, plush fur and needy expression, a koala stuffed animal is the best snuggle buddy around. Because a koala stuffed animal is so special, it will undoubtedly be one of those soft toys that becomes an all time favorite, with its owner never wanting to part with it no matter how worn and battered it might become.
