It's not often other countries get to crow about our native wildlife, but this is an exception - twin koalas! Koala joeys Little Michelle and Little Amanda emerged from their mother's pouch to greet adoring fans at China's Xiangjiang Safari Park in Guangzhou recently. Experts say the marsupials are the first twins to be born in captivity since the early '60s, when twin koalas were born at Sydney's Taronga Zoo. Read more here...A little known rather grim fact is that most mature koalas eventually lose the ability to eat gum leaves - the constant grinding wears down their blunt teeth and they don't grow back - and in zoos they must be fed a eucalyptus-based paste to stay alive. The oldest koala in captivity was called Sarah and she reached a ripe old age of 23, but then she didn't have to contend with cars, dogs and developers. If koalas manage to avoid these three, in the wild they can expect to live up to 10 years. Koala numbers are at present in serious decline, with fears they could be headed towards extinction in some parts of Australia.
CFZ Oz Team
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