I've commented before that Enigma likes to kind of drape himself on the trees :) thank you for such thoughtful comments on my photos, much appreciated!
What a wonderful difference there is between "Hang'n loose" and "Hanging in there"! This guy knows how to take life easy and is an example for us all! Totally love this!
@vignouse what a good question! It depends on the area! Where I live - the northern coast of NSW, nearly at the border to QLD, adult male koalas average 7-9kg and females 6-8kg. Down south in VIC and SA where it gets far colder the males average 10-13 kg and the females 8-11 kg so there is quite a difference!
Enigma in this photo is a sub-adult, he is around 15 months old now and I would guess he is weighing 4-5kg :)
@koalagardens Thanks for the info... they're smaller than they appear to be then as they weigh the same as our dog and cat! How tall would a fully grown male be?
@nobled you are so right - in fact what really makes koalas appealing to the human eye is the structure of their clavicle or collar bone. Most mammals apart from humans and monkeys have a very different clavicle shape because they walk on all fours. Even though the koala walks on all fours when on the ground, they actually have the same clavicle as us so when they sit in a tree and look at us, it's exactly like you say - they remind humans of a small human child and this evokes the 'awwwww' factor.
It also explains why they looks so ungainly on the ground - they cannot actually walk on two legs, so they have to awkwardly lumber along on hands and feet.
Enigma in this photo is a sub-adult, he is around 15 months old now and I would guess he is weighing 4-5kg :)
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It also explains why they looks so ungainly on the ground - they cannot actually walk on two legs, so they have to awkwardly lumber along on hands and feet.