> The diet of a koala consists mainly of the leaves from which plant?And the answer: eucalyptus. The vast majority of a koala's diet consists of the leaves from the eucalyptusplant. Eucalyptus leaves are toxic and provide very little nutritional value, sokoalas eat a lot, and then sleep for 18 to 22 hours each day to help withdigestion. Photo credit: San Diego Zoo [https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/plants/eucalypt].Though these lovable creatures may have the soft, tufted ears, big eyes andspoon-shaped noses not unlike that of a bear – sometimes even earning thenickname "koala bears" – koalas are actually marsupials. This means that theseAustralian tree-dwellers are more closely related to other species in theOutback, such as kangaroos and sugar gliders. Marsupials are primarily definedby the ability to give birth to their young before they are able to surviveindependently, and they carry their babies to term in a pouch. Koalas have six opposable thumbs. Their sharp, pointed claws and rough pads areuniquely designed to grip branches. On their front paws, five digits (includingtwo on each paw which resemble a pair of thumbs) help the koala forage and graspleaves off the trees, while their back paws each have one large, clawless,opposable digit to allow them to hold on. Of the roughly 650 species of eucalypt trees in Australia, koalas prefer onlyabout 30 of them. While these leathery leaves may seem unappealing to us – andperhaps even toxic – they are very high in fiber and easily digestible for thekoalas. In fact, koalas possess a close-ended digestive organ called a caecum,which allows them to digest the leaf fibers through fermentation. Learn more about these adorable creatures below.