Paula the Koala

These forests are huge and are the most common forests in Australia, covering 77% of the native forest area (that’s a lot!). These forests are mostly found along the coasts of Australia, so that’s where I live, high up in the trees. Why? Well, because just talking about these forests is making me hungry for my favorite snack (well, honestly, my only snack)—fresh eucalyptus leaves!

Eucalyptus leaves are toxic to many animals, but we have a special way of metabolizing those leaves so they don’t harm us. Mmmmm, eucalyptus leaves. I should probably grab some . . . or should I take a nap? Koalas like me spend twenty hours a day sleeping and the other four of the day eating.

But there’s more to us than just what we munch. Koalas are marsupials. That means my babies are born tiny and helpless. The joey will crawl into my pouch and stay there to grow, feeding on my milk for six months. When that joey is born, he’s the size of a jellybean, has no hair or ears, and can’t see anything. But after six months, he’s ready to come out and explore the world from the safety of my back. He’ll stick by me for another few months before going off on his own.

I’ve raised a few joeys, and I’m a good mother to them. But no parent takes better care of their kids, or loves them more, than our Father in heaven. You see, God loves you! He loves you so much that he sent his only Son to die for you. Now that’s love!

But why did God’s Son, Jesus, need to come and die? Well, every person has disobeyed God (sinned), and death is the penalty for sin. But Jesus came and died in our place—he took our punishment for us! Now everyone who believe in Jesus becomes a child of God, specially loved by him, and will spend eternity with him.

Here’s what Jesus said about who he is: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).

Koala Classification

Class: Mammalia
Order: Diprotodontia
Family: Phascolarctidae
Genus: Phascolarctos
Species: cinereus
Lifespan: 10–15 years

For More Information:

• Koala

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