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
1. Koala. This iconic animal is recognized worldwide as a symbol of Australia. This marsupial keeps her baby in her pouch for six months after birth (a joey is the size of a jellybean when it is born!).
Australia probably has between 200,000 and 300,000 species, about 100,000 of which have been described. There are some 250 species of native mammals, 550 species of land and aquatic birds, 680 species of reptiles, 190 species of frogs, and more than 2,000 species of marine and freshwater fish.
Eighty percent of the flora and fauna of Australia live nowhere else in the world. This is called endemism, where plants and animals are only found at one location. Australia contains 378 species of mammal, 828 birds, 4,000 fish, 300 lizards, 140 snakes and two crocodiles. Fifty of the mammals are marine mammals.
For starters, mainland Australia is the world's largest island that also tops as a continent. In fact, Australia is considered the 2nd driest continent after Antarctica. The busy Sydney harbour or the skyline of metropolitan Melbourne make it seem unbelievable that nearly 40% of Australia's land is uninhabitable.
Australia is the only continent in the world without an active volcano. Australia has three times more sheep than people. The largest Greek population in the world beside Athens in Greece can be found in Melbourne Victoria. An Australian man once tried to sell New Zealand on eBay.
Australia is known for many things, including swathes of tropical beaches, marine reserves, Aboriginal culture, cute koalas, rolling wine country, and lush rainforests.
Plants and animals are totems for Aboriginal Peoples. Aboriginal Peoples share the land with them and their relationship is fundamental to the continued practice, and cultural responsibility – for food, health, shelter, cultural expression and spiritual wellbeing.
The laughing kookaburra is Australia's national symbol. The kookaburra is a brown-colored bird, about the size of a crow. The male is easily distinguished from the female by the blue hues on his wing feathers and darker blue on his tail feathers.
Brazil. It is the country with the greatest biodiversity of flora and fauna on the planet. Brazil has the highest number of species of known mammals and freshwater fish, and more than 50,000 species of trees and bushes, it takes first place in plant diversity.
The endangered Woylie or Brush-tailed Bettong is an extremely rare, rabbit-sized marsupial, only found in Australia.
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Australian birds are arguably among the smartest in the world. Some display complex behaviours such as problem solving, learning and tool use comparable to behaviours observed in great apes.
Quokka. Meet the Aussie animal that's as cute as it is rare. Only found in small numbers in the south-west corner of Western Australia, the quokka looks like a cat-sized kangaroo — but they're more friendly than your average roo, happy to bound up to humans for a selfie (even tennis ace Roger Federer posed for one!).
The dingo is a primitive type of dog that arrived in Australia around 5000BP. Dingoes helped Aboriginal people to catch small animals, often opportunistically. Aboriginal men also used them to effectively hunt large animals like kangaroo. Domestic dogs introduced by Europeans were used to hunt in different ways.
KOALAS ARE A TOTEM FOR MANY FIRST NATIONS PEOPLE
The koala is a totem for many Aboriginal people, and totems are a very significant part of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and identity.
Hunted for meat and for sport, and used as a motif in the decorative arts, the kangaroo was finally recognised as an official symbol of Australia when it was included on the nation's coat of arms in 1908.
Australia ranks amongst the highest in the world for quality of life, health, education, economic freedom, civil liberties and political rights.
There are also a number of terms for Australia, such as: Aussie, Oz, Lucky Country, and land of the long weekend.
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.
Animal Facts
Hummingbirds are the only birds that can fly backwards. Crocodiles cannot stick their tongue out. Starfish do not have a brain. Slugs have 4 noses.