One of the most distinctive features of the quokka is their smile. Known as “the world's most cheerful animal,” quokkas have a perpetually happy expression on their face.
In 2013, the quokka was named the “Happiest Animal in the World” by the Huffington Post. After one look at these Australian marsupials and their natural 'smiles,' it's hard to imagine that these highly endemic and elusive medium-sized mammals occur on only a few islands and a fraction of their prior geographic range.
They may not actually be smiling, but...
Though they're known as the happiest animal on earth, their “smiles” are mainly due to the shape of their mouths, and they open them and stick their tongues out to keep cool!
The smiling marsupial is a favorite photo subject for tourists on West Australia's Rottnest Island. Until recently, many people outside of Australia had never heard of thequokka, a Muppet-cute (despite its beady eyes and rat's tail) marsupial with an irresistible smile.
A small marsupial native to Australia, the quokka is known far and wide as the 'happiest animal in the world' due to its cute face and approachable nature. If you see a picture of a quokka, oftentimes, they are literally smiling. These adorable creatures are usually only found in isolated forests and small islands.
It's our feline friends that are the cutest pets of them all, according to science. With cats coming out as the animals with the most adorable faces, followed by ferrets, rabbits and hamsters.
More than 80% of our plants, mammals, reptiles and frogs are unique to Australia and are found nowhere else in the world. Some of our Australian animals are very well known like kangaroos, dingos, wallabies and wombats and of course the koala, platypus and echidna.
The quokka, a small marsupial native to Australia, is one such example of a species vulnerable to extinction in the country's harsh surroundings. Known as the “happiest animal in the world” due to its cute and friendly appearance, these creatures are now only found in a few isolated forests and small islands.
For a long time, we thought that only humans could laugh. However, research into non-human primate behaviour has found that chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans use a play-pant laugh when tickled, and other research into chimpanzees found that they can smile in the same way as humans.
Overview. That quokka may be cute, but does it want a hug? The quokka says “No!” In Don't Hug The Quokka!, young readers get a lighthearted and friendly introduction to the concept of consent, learning that even the most adorable creatures might not want a hug—unless they say so!
Rottnest Island is known worldwide to be the home of the happiest animal on Earth – the Quokka (Setonix brachyurus). Close relatives of Wallabies, these tiny animals are found all over Rottnest Island, where their survival is largely attributed to the exclusion of any natural predators.
These adorable critters aren't territorial, which isn't surprising, given how friendly they are. Unlike kangaroos, that do fight over territory, quokkas are happy to co-exist peacefully with each other, so much that they even hop into shops on Rottnest Island regularly to say hello to everybody.
Can You Legally Keep Quokkas as Pets? The main reason why quokkas don't make good pets is that it's illegal to remove them from Australia. Quokkas are heavily protected by Australian law. The IUCN currently classifies them as threatened.
Kangaroos, quokkas, and wallabies have 3 types of bodies: girl, boy, and both!
Australia is known for many things, including swathes of tropical beaches, marine reserves, Aboriginal culture, cute koalas, rolling wine country, and lush rainforests.
1. Numbat. The Numbat is small to medium sized marsupial that's the faunal emblem of Western Australia.
Dogs are the most popular pet, with almost half of Australian households keeping at least one dog (48% in 2022, up from 40% in 2019). Cats come second, with a third of all households with at least one cat (33% in 2022, up from 27% in 2019).
The quokka, a close cousin of the kangaroo, rocketed to internet fame when tourists began taking selfies with the animal, which is unafraid of humans and appears to smile for pictures.
The rarest animal in the world is the vaquita (Phocoena sinus). It is a kind of critically endangered porpoise that only lives in the furthest north-western corner of the Gulf of California in Mexico. There are only 18 left in the world. It is thought that they may be extinct in ten years.