Though often called the koala “bear,” this cuddly animal is not a bear at all; it is a marsupial, or pouched mammal. After giving birth, a female koala carries her baby in her pouch for about six months. When the infant emerges, it rides on its mother's back or clings to her belly, accompanying her everywhere until it is about a year old.
Sleepy Behavior and Eucalyptus Diet
Koalas live in eastern Australia, where the eucalyptus trees they love are most plentiful. In fact, they rarely leave these trees, and their sharp claws and opposable digits easily keep them aloft. During the day they doze, tucked into forks or nooks in the trees, sleeping for up to 18 hours.
When not asleep a koala feeds on eucalyptus leaves, especially at night. Koalas do not drink much water and they get most of their moisture from these leaves. Each animal eats a tremendous amount for its size—about two and a half pounds of leaves a day. Koalas even store snacks of leaves in pouches in their cheeks.
A special digestive system—a long gut—allows koalas to break down the tough eucalyptus leaves and remain unharmed by their poison. Koalas eat so many of these leaves that they take on a distinctive odor from their oil, reminiscent of cough drops.
🦄單字一籮筐:
1. Marsupial 有袋動物
2. Clings 粘緊,附著,緊貼
3. Eucalyptus 尤加利樹
4. Opposable 可反對的,可對抗的,可對立的
5. Aloft (ad.)在高處,在上
6. Nooks (vt.) 把…藏[放]在角落裡。
7. Tremendous 巨大的；極好的
8. Reminiscent 使人想起…的；使人回憶起…的
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