Australian Fauna II

The Koala is one of Australia's best-known animals. This territorial, nocturnal creature has soft, thick grey fur on its body and white fur on its chest. It lives in eucalyptus forests, rarely moving out of its home range, where it eats up to 500 grams of eucalyptus leaves per day. To adapt to a diet so fibrous and low in nutrition, the Koala sleeps somewhere between 18 and 22 hours each day. The Koala’s main habitats are limited to eastern Australia, and there are concerns about population decline due to a range of factors, including habitat destruction and disease.

Wombats are the largest burrowing mammals in Australia. These stocky creatures dig vast burrow systems of up to 20 metres long, more than two metres below the ground, with their rat-like front teeth and powerful claws. The rump of the wombat is covered by a very tough, thick skin that is often used as protection from attackers, as it dives into its burrow or a hollow log.

The Common Wombat, the species featured on the stamp, is the only living member of its genus Vombatus, though it is similar in appearance to Australia’s two other wombat species, the main difference being the absence of hair on its nose and courser fur. The Common Wombat’s main habitats are limited to south-eastern Australia.

The Short-beaked Echidna is found across Australia, including in some urban areas. It prefers forests and woodlands, heath, grasslands and arid environments. This shy creature uses its spikes to defend itself (rolling into a ball if frightened) and its thin, burrowing nose helps it to find ants and termites to eat. Echidnas and the Platypus are the only extant monotremes in the world. The Short-beaked Echidna is Australia’s only echidna species; the Long-beaked Echidna lives in New Guinea.

Sugar gliders are palm-sized, tree-dwelling marsupials that can glide or “fly” around 50 metres, using their bushy tails are rudders. These omnivorous possums are native to tropical and cool-temperate forests in Australia (where they can be found in all states and territories), as well as in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Closely related to kangaroos, these tiny nocturnal creatures use their large eyes to see in the dark, also aided by a large field of vision.