Koala's are iconic animals that are native to Australia. A common mistake is to call them a 'koala bear' as they are not bears but marsupials, who are mammals with pouches for their offspring. Koalas have hair like the coarse wool a sheep. They have two opposing thumbs on their hands and two toes fused together on their feet which help them to comb their fur. They have rough pads and claws on their hands and feet to help them to grab onto branches. Koalas live in the eucalyptus forests of southeastern and eastern Australia. They rely on the eucalyptus tree for both habitat and food, eating more than a pound of it every day. The eucalyptus is toxic so the koalas digestive system has to work hard to digest it which leads to the koala sleeping for long periods of the day. Koalas can sleep from 18 to 22 hours. They don't need to drink much water because of their diet and with their handy pouches they can even store some leaves for later. When they are not sleeping you can probably find them eating. Koalas breed in the summer time and their newborns are about the size of a bee. They will stay in their mothers pouches for the first 13 weeks. Joeys leave the pouch at 7 months old and start to travel on their mothers backs only returning to the pouch to suckle. They are fully weaned and independent by 12 months of age. They are loveable animals but are facing the threat of extinction with the threats they face.