Australian Animals Facts
Amazing Australian animals you should know about
Australia is known for its exciting and diverse wildlife. There are so many incredible animals in Australia. Due to million-year isolation from the rest of the world, allowed an amazingly diverse group of the animal to evolve in Australia.
Interestingly, more than 80% of ‘Australian animals‘ are native to Australia; in other words, these animals are only found in Australia. Australia has almost 400 mammal species and about 140 species of marsupials. A marsupial is an animal that carries the young in her pouch.
Let's explore some incredible animals in Australia
1. Cane Toad
- Average Length : 0–15 cm (4–6 inches)
- Weight: 2.9 pounds (1.3 KGs)
- TYPE: Amphibians (cold-blooded vertebrate typically living on land but breeding in water)
- Diet: Omnivorous (that eats food of both plant and animal)
- Life Expectancy: 10-15 Years in the wild
2. Animals in Australia - Kangaroo
Another one of the native animals to Australia, New Guinea is the Kangaroo. It is a very interesting fact that the human population is Australia is around 25 million, whereas the population of Kangaroo is 50 million. The Kangaroo is a marsupial from the family Macropodidae. “Marsupials have a special pouch where they carry their babies.”
- Life Expectancy: 6 Years in the wild
- SCIENTIFIC NAME: Macropus Rufus
- TYPE: Mammals
- DIET: Herbivore
- GROUP NAME: Mob
- AVERAGE LIFE SPAN IN THE WILD: Up to 23 years
- SIZE: Head and body: 3.25 to 5.25 feet; tail: 35.5 to 43.5 inches
- WEIGHT: 200 pounds
- A group of kangaroos is called a MOB.
- Babies of Kangaroos are known as ‘JOEYS’
- Red Kangaroo
- The Eastern Grey Kangaroo
- The Western Grey Kangaroo
- The Antilopine Kangaroo.
3. Australian Animals - Thorny Dragon
The Thorny Dragon, also known as the MOUNTAIN DEVIL, THORNY LIZARD, THORNY DRAGON, and MOLOCH. The scientific name of Thorny Dragon is “Moloch horridus”. Thorny devils are species of small lizards and are native animals to Australia. They live in the arid shrubland and desert of the interior of the continent.
The interesting fact of the thorny dragon is they can change the colour of their body. In warm weather, the thorny dragons are usually pale yellow and red, but they can change rapidly to darker colours in cold weather or when alarmed.
They undergo this colour change daily as the sun rises and they become more active. In the cool morning, thorny lizards are a drab olive-brown and get lighter as the temperature increases.
4. Sydney Funnel-Web Spider
The Sydney funnel-web spider is the Most Venomous of all Spiders. They are native to eastern Australia. These spiders prefer to make a home in shady, coll, and humid places. The natural habitats are rainforests and wet sclerophyll forests.
The venom of these spiders is used to create anti-venom, and that is why after 1981 no human death has been reported due to the bite of Sydney funnel-web spider.
5. Australian Animals - EMU
The Emu is the tallest native bird in Australia and the second tallest bird in the world after the ostrich. EMU has TWO eyelids. One eyelid is used for blinking, while others prevent dust and sand to enter the eyes.
- SCIENTIFIC NAME: Dromaius novaehollandiae
- TYPE: Birds
- DIET: Omnivore
- AVERAGE LIFE SPAN: 10 to 20 years in the wild
- SIZE: 5.2 to 6.2 feet high
- WEIGHT: 66 to 100 pounds
- Emu eggs are dark green.
- Once the eggs are laid, it is up to the male Emu to sit on them for roughly eight weeks.
6. Australian Animals - Koala
- Koalas are native to Australia.
- Koalas are found in the Eucalyptus forests of the east coast of Australia.
- Although Koalas are often called bear just because they look like a cute teddy bear, but actually they are not bear.
- Like kangaroo, Koala are also marsupials.
- Food: Koala’s favourite food is eucalyptus leaves, and they can eat up to 1 kg of leaves every day.
- Average Lifespan: 20 years in the wild.
- Size: 2-3 feet
- Weight: Around 20 pounds
- Because of low energy, Koala sleeps a lot. They can sleep up to 18 hours a day.
- The 2019–20 Australian bushfire, also known as the Black Summer, severely affected the overall number of Koala in Australia. Even many Koalas that survived the flames died from smoke inhalation, dehydration, starvation, and other hazards
7. Eastern Blue Tongued Lizard
Blue tongued-lizard are native to Australia. They are found in Australia and New Guinea. This lizard is a subspecies of large skink.
Blue tongued lizards are famous for the tongue that can range from bright to dark blue. When they are threatened by their predator, they stick out their large blue tongue and hiss loudly to surprise and confuse the predator.
- Length: up to 60 cm
- Weight: 280-510 G
- Lifespan: maybe in access of 20 years.
- Habitat: rainforests, grasslands, forests, and deserts
- Diet: They are omnivorous, and they eat a wide variety of animals and plants
8. Australian Animals - Dingo
Dingoes are Australia’s largest terrestrial predator. Unlike dogs, Dingoes rarely bark. Like the wolf, dingos also communicate with each other through howling.
Due to the crossbreeding with domestic dogs, their pure genetic strain is gradually being compromised.
- Type: Mammals
- Diet: Carnivore
- Size: 3.5 to 4 FT.
- Weight: 22-35 Ponds
9. The Inland Taipan Snake
- Genus Oxyuranus
- Species microlepidotus
- Length Up to 2.5 meters
- Weight 1 – 2 kilograms
- Diet Carnivore
- Incubation Approx. 60 days
10. Australian Animals - Echidnas
Echidnas, sometimes known as SPINY ANTEATERS. They are the only monotremes in the world, which means that they are egg-laying mammals. Echidnas are actually toothless mammals, but they use their long, sticky tongues to feed themselves.
Their tongues work very quickly, enabling them to slurp up ants, worms, and insect larvae. When frightened, the echidna rolls into a small ball to protect itself.
